Weather halts Mt Cook search, missing climbers 'experienced'

Wednesday, 31 December 2014

Raphael Viellehner, a 27-year-old German, is one of the three climbers missing on Mt Cook.

A search and rescue operation for three climbers overdue on Aoraki/Mt Cook has been deferred until tomorrow because of bad weather.

Alpine Guides chief guide Dave McKinley said the rescue operation would begin at first light.

Mt Cook was covered in cloud at 4pm yesterday, hampering the search for three missing climbers.

'It looks like the weather will ease.

'We hope to have the operation in play first thing tomorrow morning.'

New Zealand Police, Department of Conservation and volunteers will gather at 6am and all operations will be staged from Mt Cook.

The three men are experienced climbers who police say are 'extremely fit'.

Senior Constable Brent Swanson confirmed the identities of the three climbers as Dr Michael Bishop, a 53-year-old from Sydney, Johann Viellehner, 58, and his son Raphael, 27, both from Germany.

Raphael Viellehner is a talented runner and has completed numerous competitive races.

A profile of Viellehner on online athletics community group LG Passau lists his best sporting achievements, which include running a half-marathon in 1 hour and 7 minutes in 2010. His hobbies are listed as rock climbing, cross country skiiing and mountain biking.

His Facebook profile shows he lives in Muhldorf, a town in south Germany, east of Munich. It also says he is in a relationship and graduated from college last year.

It is understood that Viellehner's sister Julia is a well-known cross country runner and duathlete who also lives in Germany.

Swanson said Johann Viellehner had significant climbing experience and had climbed in parts of Europe, including Russia. All three men were described as extremely fit, he said.

The Sydney man among the missing climbers on Aoraki-Mount Cook had previously climbed in the national park, police said.

It is understood Bishop is a GP in Brookvale, Sydney. Staff at his former clinic described him as an avid climber who was currently on holiday, but they did not know where.

WEATHER HAMPERS SEARCH

Thunder storms, rain and strong wind gusts stopped the search today.

Police and the Department of Conservation were alerted at 6am yesterday that the trio were missing. A search began but was abandoned about 10.30am because of the weather.

The men left Plateau Hut at 1:30am on Monday and have not returned.

They were last seen at 4am on Monday at Teichelmann's Corner on Linda Glacier by a returning guide. They were roped together when they left the hut.

MetService meteorologist John Law said the weather today was 'not looking flash'.

'There will be rain, thunderstorms and northwesterly gales up to 60kmh,' he said.

'The winds will make it feel slightly cooler, particularly cool if you are up high.'

The weather should ease this afternoon and should be fine in the region for the next three days, Law said.

Swanson confirmed there would be no searching today.

Alpine Guides chief guide Dave McKinley believed he was among the last to see the group.

He said that judging by their gear and their preparation, they seemed to have had experience in climbing.

The search and rescue team would regroup at Mt Cook this afternoon.

'We will be brainstorming an action plan for various scenarios to bring them back,' McKinley said.

'We will be thinking of as many different possibilities as we can.'

McKinley said Mt Cook had a unique terrain and was the only national park in New Zealand to require fulltime summer search and rescue staff.

He urged any members of the public who had any information about the plans of the trio to contact police.

'If they have personal information, any information on their objectives while on the mountain it could help.'