Russian climber killed by falling rock at Mt Fuji

Very tragic.

RIP

In every such case I always hold more compassion to the relatives and close people of the victim - they are left to suffer a world without one of their important friends. Maybe something more. It is a great lack of responsibility on the victim's side - they know it is not safe, and if something was to happen aforementioned people with close mental ties would suffer the most. And yet they still decide to risk their own life, and fragments of their close ones. What is it, ambition? Self-respect complex? What could be so much more important to an individual than the mental well-being of friends and relatives...

they know it is not safe

Climbing Fuji is extremely safe. Roughly 400,000 people climb it every year. The last time I remember a death was at least seven or eight year ago. That's millions of people climbing the mountain without dying.

Not exactly the most dangerous outing by any means.

yet they still decide to risk their own life, and fragments of their close ones. What is it, ambition? Self-respect complex? What could be so much more important to an individual than the mental well-being of friends and relatives...

We all have our one life to live. Sometimes one needs to live it for their own satisfaction, not for their family's. Healthy families support. Unhealthy families stunt.

RIP.

This tragedy should not deter people from such activities.

Do what you believe in. Take the challenges and enjoy this fleeting existence while you can.

Deaths do occur on Fuji, but mostly in the winter, when extreme sports enthusiasts ski or snowboard down from the top.

I don’t mean to speculate, but perhaps this woman’s life could have been saved if the climbers above her followed climbing courtesy rules and yelled “Rock!” when the rock came loose.

It should be on the brochures. A lot of tourists and first timers don’t know that you’re supposed to yell “Rock!” when a rock comes loose, and “Fall” when a climber takes a tumble.

Wow, freak accident! A young girl said a rock started to roll down. How often do rocks fall on mount Fuji? Poor girl. Perhaps they will consider using helmets now for the climb?

Is it still fun to climb? Yesterday on the tv I just saw a huge line of people.

@Daniel Fuji is very safe, it barely have any accidents, this is just an unfortunate freak accident.

R.I.P

I hope the almighty God grant the family fortitude to overcome this tragic loss.

Poor lady. Just unlucky I suppose. Rockfall is more common in bad weather like rain.

Its turned very cool very quickly this week, so anyone climbing Fuji for the sunrise will need to wrap up even more than normal. Expect near freezing temperatures and wind chill.

The rock hit in her the chest, according to NHK. Ergo, the helmet would not have helped.

Daniel Naumoff: When the extreme of thought police overtakes individuals desires and actions as a decision making adult, it can severely limit life experience and stifle a personality. In fact, confidence for people, from a young age, can be from taking calculated risk and succeeding challenges, which is a positive. We all have different reasons why we do things. Respecting an individual's choices is a characteristic of flexibility of which I think is commendable and necessary. Climbing Mt. Fuji actually is not a life threatening event, and resulting in a rare accident is not something one should castigate the death of the unfortunate person it happened to by sympathizing the loved one's over the person who died and lost her life. Completely ludicrous.

RIP to the young woman who died.

Is it still fun to climb? Yesterday on the tv I just saw a huge line of people.

Think of waiting in line for a line at Disney, but instead on a snow covered mountain. Does that sound fun ?

I'd like to climb Fuji one day, but probably on the least popular of the four? routes. Maybe not for the sunrise either, which strikes me as mostly hype from people who don't hike and see other mountains at dawn. All big mountains are beautiful first thing. Ones with other peaks nearby that glow pinky orange in the early rays may be more spectacular than Fuji.

I get out quite a bit but try not to climb mountains in bad weather when there is no visibility. I must say that climbing in the dark appeals even less. If there is any risk of rockfall, I'd like to see it coming, not just hear it in pitch darkness.

RIP.

The top of the mountain was closed for about two weeks at the start of July due to large rockfall on the same course and roughly the same area. I wonder if this happened in the same place?

The last time I remember a death was at least seven or eight year ago.

In 2017 seven climbers died on the mountain BUT they were all climbing it outside of the climbing season. This year I heard of a couple of deaths prior to Golden Week. A local chap died whilst doing it alone on Fujisan Day (Feb 23rd).

With all of its infrastructure, it's one of the safest mountains to climb in season. Freak accidents will happen though. A decade or so ago someone sleeping in their car at the 5th station got crushed by a falling boulder.

My condolences to her family. Such a sad article to read.

Snow: No, the mountain is not snow covered during climbing season.

Danger: Walking outside your door is probably more dangerous than climbing Mt. Fuji, in general. There is a lot of support up and down that mountain and the chances of being hit are astronomically small. It is a huge mountain.

Long line: The line you have seen steadily moves toward the top. The crowd at the top makes watching the sunrise a more memorable event. I have climbed the mountain on the first day and there was hardly anyone up there and not as magical without the crowd, believe it or not.

Again, I am so sad to hear this news. RIP

Yes, very sad.

I have climbed Mt Fuji twice

and the sad thing is, almost for sure that rock would have moved from someone coming down. I know, its easy to run down the steep places and this will cause other rocks to move, fall.

Yes, very sad all around, I hope the person that did this (accident) didn't actually see the result

Think of waiting in line for a line at Disney, but instead on a snow covered mountain. Does that sound fun ?

you don't have to do it in the peak peak season! I climbed it in mid September, no crowds, no lines

I’ve climbed it a few times. The large numbers of people never bothered me.

I’m not sure I’d call it ‘fun’, but I would say I enjoyed it. The experiences were well worth it.

I unfortunately won’t have time to climb it this year.

Why are there no large gondola ropeways on Fuji.

It's a sacred mountain, so they may feel that they can't. That said they have a plethora of yamagoyas, toilets restaurants etc.

Also, it would be quite an engineering undertaking on such tricky terrain, but I suppose not unsurmountable. And the numbers of people wanting to use it would be staggering, I'm not sure they could build a system of such sufficient capacity. There's also a question of ownership, which is a real minefield!

But probably because it's a an active volcano and the investors might see their money swallowed by magma before they get a return.

It is a great lack of responsibility on the victim's side - they know it is not safe.

I honestly doubt you have any idea of what you're talking about. I've climbed Mt. Fuji seven times, and I'm not an athlete by any stretch. People of all ages and physical conditions climb it every year. They're not "risking their lives" any more than they do by walking out their doors in the morning.

@ClippetyClop Not saying I am for a gondola, but there are volcanos active volcanos in Japan that have ropeways and gondolas. Hakone comes to mind and it passes directly over where the eruptions usually occur. Mt. Nasu has one and there are more that are slipping my mind. As for ownership, you would need to talk to Fujisan Hongu Sengentaisha, which is a Shinto shrine that supposedly owns the mountain. The fact that it is a World Heritage Site might dictate the most what goes on up there. Surely a gondola would make the ascent seem safer, but can you imagine the lines to board the thing? I bet you'd have to make a reservation a year in advance.

@hooktrunk, fair points well made. I'd forgotten about the World Heritage part of it too. They did float the idea of a ropeway a few years ago but there was an immediate and massive outcry. In recent years the governor & local tourist board have suggested building a train / trollley car to the 5th station and then banning motors vehicles from going up. It would mean far less pollution but far less people would be able to get up there in high season.

And again, when Fuji inevitably kicks off again it would melt the lot

Why are there no large gondola ropeways on Fuji.

Because the topsoil is constantly shifting loose gravel and not stable enough to support even a paved road past the 5th station.

First time that I've heard of such an accident, how did the Rock come to be falling ? Was it a freak of nature or did someone push it ?

Just a personal observation but the cable car/gondolas at Chamonix and Mt. Blanc are way up in the air and have huge unsupported spans. I've never seen anything like it on a Japanese mountain. They all low and have pylons every few hundred meters. I don't know if its know-how or earthquakes or the gravely and unrocky form of Japanese mountains, but a gondola up Fuji with the Japanese way of building them would presumably mean trying to bury literally dozens of pylons into volcanic gravel. I don't know any big gondola in Japan that is big pylons and the start and end and wires in between.

Given that every Shinkansen line is essentially a concrete bridge that stretches for hundreds of kilometers, I suspect Japanese would happily have built a gondola up Mt. Fuji in the 1960s or 1970s given the ability to do it. Environmental concerns or "holy mountain" would not have been a problem.

I was on the mountain, and she would have passed me on her way up.  She was just 100 meters or so above me when hit by the rocks.  My understanding is that she was hit in both her head and chest.   I saw her receiving heart massage in the back of a tracked truck as they took her to the waiting ambulance at the 5th station - but they were not giving her mouth-to-mouth recessitation, but rather just chest compressions.  Odd, that.  Unfortunately, the ambulance was still at the 5th station hours later when I decended, not having moved, since they only transport the living.  RIP.

Hi,

so very sad to hear of this young ladies demise. I climbed Fujisan a few weeks back. I’m in pretty good shape and run for exercise.

Make no mistake about it, Fuji mountain is extremely dangerous, slippery and never ending. The hike up to station 8 where we rested ( many people got sick from the curry, beware) no sleeping. Many people throwing up from bad curry dinner and altitude sickness, then 3.5 hours to the summit.

5.5 hours down.

Mall in all 15 hours of serious hiking and climbing witch seems never ending. The switchbacks went on what seemed like forever.

Im so very sorry for her friends and family. I’m sure she did not climb alone. Tragic.

Please take my warnings about this mountain seriously. It’s dangerous, not fun. It’s beautiful, yes, dangerous, extremely.

always, always, always, pack a headlamp and wear the appropriate clothing. Bring your own food.

Start climbing from the 5th station no later than 1pm or you’ll be climbing treacherous rocks in the dark, like I did.

Good luck to those who climb, God bless to the gal who’s soul lives on the mountain.