Northern CA Man Survives Mt. Everest Avalanche

Northern CA Man Survives Mt. Everest Avalanche

A Northern California man (right) survived the avalanche on Mount Everest last Friday that killed at least 13 people. 

Contractor Jon Reiter told the Santa Rose Press Democrat that his Sherpa guide saved his life when his first instinct was to take out his camera and film the avalanche.

“We were moving up to Camp 1 just after dawn when we heard that ‘crack,'” he said. “My first thought was to film it, and I reached for my camera. But the Sherpa yelled to get down. Things started happening in slow motion. Big blocks of snow and ice started coming down all around.”

Reiter, who reportedly has a goal of climbing the highest peak on each continent, “will likely wait a few days before continuing the ascent up Everest.”

“We are shaken but OK,” Reiter wrote. “One thought is that we were so lucky. But the overwhelming feelings are for the poor families of the people that didn’t make it.”

Photo: Santa Rose Press Democrat

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