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Gerard McDonnell (20 January 1971–2 August 2008) , mountaineer and engineer, was the first Irish person to reach the summit of K2,^[1] the second-highest mountain on Earth, in August 2008. He lost his life along with ten other mountaineers following an avalanche on the descent,^[2] in the worst single accident in the history of K2 mountaineering.^[3][4]

McDonnell was born in Kilcornan, County Limerick.^[5] A decade before his K2 success, he had moved to Anchorage, Alaska. He hoped not only to work there but also to develop his skills as a mountaineer. McDonnell was well known in Anchorage's Irish community. Among his interests was playing the bodhrán in a band. He was described as a "philosopher" and a "great storyteller".^[6] McDonnell famously pucked a hurley from the summit of Mount Everest in 2003 but was unsuccessful during an earlier attempt on K2 in 2006 when he was hit by a rock and airlifted to hospital.^[7] He also travelled to the South Pole, after which he met Irish President, Mary McAleese. She was among the dignitaries to pay tribute to him following his death.^[8]

McDonnell's group had been on a mammoth expedition for eight weeks, surviving in sub-zero temperatures. In an online despatch, he said that after the team set 31 July as their date for the summit bid, spirits were high. "Let luck and good fortune prevail, fingers crossed," he wrote.^[1] However, following the avalanche, a serac fell, cutting all the fixed lines on his and his fellow members of the Dutch-led Norit K2 Expedition's^[6] path.

It was said by the surviving members of McDonnell's team that he refused to descend because he was helping the others that were injured. Expedition leader Wilco van Rooijen, a 40-year-old Dutch climber who was airlifted to a military hospital in Pakistan after surviving the accident, said that poor preparations had contributed to the disaster. He suggested that advance climbers laid ropes in the wrong places on the mountain, hampering the climb of several teams of mountaineers and ultimately contributing to deaths of three of the climbers on his team. "Everything was going well to camp four, and on summit attempt, everything went wrong," said van Rooijen from his hospital bed in the Northern Pakistani town of Skardu. "The biggest mistake we made was that we tried to make agreements. Everybody had his own responsibility and then some people did not do what they promised. With such stupid things, lives are endangered." He singled out another team for only bringing half the length of rope they were supposed to.^[9] Ger McDonnell's satellite phone was found in some belongings two surviving climbers brought back to camp.^[10] Mr McDonnell's partner, brother JJ and sister Denise flew to Islamabad in search of answers. Whilst McDonnell's body was not recovered, a memorial service was held in Kilcornan on 17 August 2008 and an online book of condolence was opened.^[11]

Ger's mother, brother, partner, van Rooijen and Falvey later appeared on The Late Late Show on 3 October 2008. In 2009, a memorial fund was set up in his honour to provide first-aid training and safe climbing technique for high-altitude porters.^[12]

The Gerard McDonnell Memorial Fund sponsors the children of the high-altitude porters who died in the tragedy on K2. Gerard McDonnell Memorial Fund.

Ger's former DCU Electronic Engineering college classmates established a Living Trust in memory of Ger and are seeking donations via the DCU Educational Trust.

References

Articles

• "Ger died doing what he loved: touching the void" — Mountaineer Pat Falvey writes for the Irish Independent, August 4, 2008
• "Dreamers who risk death to feel most alive" — Derek Fanning writes for the Irish Independent, August 10, 2008

External links

• "Norit K2 Expedition 2008" — Alternative K2 2008 expedition website in English, includes Ger's expedition blog