Climber who fell off ridge at Denali NP rescued 1,000 feet below with 'minor injuries,' park says

A climber who was rescued roughly 1,000 feet below a ridge he fell off of in Alaska’s Denali National Park is recovering after suffering “minor injuries,” the National Park Service is reporting.

Tatsuto Hatanaka, 24, of Setagaya-ku, Japan, was taken by medical helicopter to a hospital after park officials said he fell from a ridge on the West Buttress at an elevation of 16,200 feet, while climbing to Peters Glacier on Friday night.

According to a press release, Hatanaka was climbing with a partner , when at about 11 p.m., Hatanaka’s partner watched him fall from a ridge but could not see where he landed. About 2 p.m. on Saturday, Rangers were notified about the fall and a National Park Service helicopter was dispatched to the area where it located Hatanaka alive.