FALL OVER BLUFF Young Man Dies On Mt. Sealy

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28474, 2 January 1958, Page 8

FALL OVER BLUFF Young Man Dies On Mt. Sealy

(From Our Own Reporter) TIMARU, January 1. A young Australian mountaineer holidaying in the Mount Cook area was killed instantly when he slid down a mountainside and over a bluff and fell several hundred feet on to the Mueller glacier early on Tuesday morning. He was John David Hodgson, aged. 23, single, a schoolteacher, of 32 Wattle grove, Moreland, Melbourne. Mr, Hodgson, who had been in New Zealand three weeks, was climbing Mount Sehly, about five hours’ walk behind the Hermitage, and was at a height of 5500 ft when the accident occurred. He and his friend, Clement Thomas Michael Jensen, aged 21, of 35 Veda street, Essendon, Melbourne, met by prior arrangement at the new Mueller hut on December 28 and set out to climb Mount Sealy at about 5 a.m. on the day of the accident. Neither of the men had had much experience of climbing on snow and ice although both had had some rock climbing experience. Mr Jensen said they both thought they were quite capable of making the climb on their own. They made reasonably good progress in climbing until 6.30 a.m. when they realised that a better route could be found further down the slope. Another party which had set out after them had passed them and was already higher up the mountain. Slide Down Slope

The two men decided. to slide down 300 ft to get to better going. They began to slide down on their stomachs, using their ice axes as brakes to control the slide. They were half-way down when Mr Hodgson lost his ice axe and had no means of controlling his slide. He continued helplessly down the slope and disappeared over a bluff. He fell several hundred feet on to the Mueller glacier and is thought to have been killed instantly. Mr Jensen managed to reach safety by chopping steps in the ice-crusted snow with his axe.

Members of the party which had passed the two men, saw the accident and immediately began to climb back down the mountain. One of them returned to the Hermitage and the police at Timaru were informed by 9.50 a.m.

Mr Gordon Buchanan, who is in charge of the New Zealand Search and Rescue Organisation at Christchurch and was on holiday at Mount Cook, took charge of operations. He sent in a ground party of 10 with Mr Jack Ede, a guide, in charge. The party did not reach Mr Hodgson’s body until 3.30 p.m., nine hours after the accident. ,

A Mount Cook Tourist Company ski-equipped plane, piloted by Mr J. Evans, flew two more men in to the plateau in the morning to assist in bringing out the body, but because of fog the aircraft was not able to render further assistance.

The body was brought to Timaru this evening. Messrs Jensen and Hodgson had been acquainted for five years and had attended training college together during the last 12 months. The two men had been staying at the Wyn Irwin hut on Foliage hill, about a mile and a half from the Hermitage.