Site Logo

One dead, three injured in Mount Rainier rockfall

Published 4:50 pm Wednesday, July 22, 2026

By Ray Miller-Still Editor

A cleaver is a type of narrow ridge that splits the flow of a glacier (like a knife cleaver cutting through food). The Disappointment Cleaver divides the Ingraham Glacier and the Emmons Glacier. There are several other cleavers dividing the glaciers of Mount Rainier. NPS climbing ranger photo of a climber approaching Ingraham Flats (notice the tents set up on the glacier) with Disappointment Cleaver in the background, 8/9/25. Photo courtesy National Park Service

A cleaver is a type of narrow ridge that splits the flow of a glacier (like a knife cleaver cutting through food). The Disappointment Cleaver divides the Ingraham Glacier and the Emmons Glacier. There are several other cleavers dividing the glaciers of Mount Rainier. NPS climbing ranger photo of a climber approaching Ingraham Flats (notice the tents set up on the glacier) with Disappointment Cleaver in the background, 8/9/25. Photo courtesy National Park Service

One person was recently killed, and another three injured, during a rockfall on Mount Rainier.

According to reports, a group of six climbers were summiting the mountain via Disappointment Cleaver at 11,600 feet when the rockfall occurred on July 19.

One climber, 44, died at the scene. A second was hospitalized with serious injuries, and the remaining two reportedly suffered minor injuries.

The climber who died has not yet been identified by the medical examiner’s office.

Disappointment Cleaver is the most popular route for summiting the mountain.

A National Park Service guide to the route warns that chances of rockfalls increase later in the day during the summer season.

You Might Like