Gerard McDonnell (and 8-10 others) August 4, 2008, 10:22 am
Ireland Mourns Its Latest Hero
By Mike Nizza
<img src="http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2008/06/04/arts/gerard531.jpg" alt=" - " />
Gerard McDonnell, the first Irishman to climb K2. (Photo: patfalvey.com, via AFP ?? Getty Images)
??Let luck and good fortune prevail !!! Fingers crossed.?
Those words in a blog post began the last adventure of Gerard McDonnell, who would become one of nine victims of an avalanche at the most dangerous section of the most challenging mountain in the world.
Indeed, Mr. McDonnell, 37, hoped to embody a superlative all his own: Becoming the first Irishman to reach the top of K2, a goal that earned a round of headlines as he prepared to climb.
On Friday, he delivered. ??Irish adventurer tops the world,? one Irish paper reported. ??Limerick native becomes first Irishman to scale K2? said another.
The news was relayed by Pat Falvey, a well-known Irish explorer who was
posting updates from the mountaineers themselves.
Friday began triumphantly when Maarten van Eck, who was running the expedition??s Web site, sent Mr. Falvey a message. ??The are on the Summit!!,? he wrote. ??Gerard just became the FIRST Irishman to become a K2-summiteer.?
Still, there was caution, of course. ??The summit is only half way!? Mr. Van Eck wrote before echoing Mr. McDonnell. ??Keep your fingers crossed.?
The bad news began rushing in the following day. Just hours after his moment of triumph, Mr. McDonnell was believed to be stuck above the avalanche in dire circumstances. Hope was dwindling by the hour.
Mr. Falvey kept blogging about the expedition as it turned deadly. First, one climber was confirmed dead, and ??6 climbers were spotted motionless,? probably including Mr. McDonnell. As his status remained ??unknown,? a later update laid the heartrending situation bare, ??We still do not know were Gerard is.?
Soon, Mr. Falvey, who had climbed Mount Everest with Mr. McDonnell, and the McDonnell family became convinced that all hope had been lost. The next blog post would be a message from the family mourning and celebrating Ireland??s latest hero:
The last few days have been a roller coaster of emotions as we celebrated with joy his historic achievement, and now must try to come to terms with the untimely loss of a great son, brother and friend.
[?] He was a true and proud Irish man.
Indeed, the nation??s pride was acknowledged hours later by President Mary McAleese, who described the loss as ??truly heartbreaking.?
In a column in The Irish Independent, Mr. Falvey assured Mr. McDonnell??s family and the nation that he ??died doing what he loved: touching the void.?
??There will be no-one else sent up to look for them now because the risks are just too great,? he wrote. ??We accept, as Ger??s family do, that he will not be coming down from that mountain.?
