ROCK CLIMBING 2 January 2009 UPDATED - Fatal fall/rope cut, Pierces Pass, Blue Mountains NSW

[Richard DELANEY]

ROCK CLIMBING 2 January 2009 – Fatal fall, Pierces Pass, Blue
Mountains, NSW

The Australian Accident Register has received confirmation of
information from direct witnesses of this accident and is now able to
add more detail and update the previous version of this report.

A 24 year old Sydney man, Nick Kaczorowski died after falling from a
route at Pierces Pass in the Grose Valley late on the morning of
Friday 2nd January. The man was lead climbing the route Bunny Bucket
Buttress (a multi-pitch grade 18) with a male climbing partner when
the pair got off-route near the fifth pitch and began following a line
of new-looking bolts to the right of the original Bunny Bucket
Buttress route. This line of new-looking bolts – expansion bolts with
fixed hangers – is probably a new un-finished route or “project”.
Nearby climbers told the AAR that they believed the pair (and a second
pair of climbers following closely) thought they were still climbing
Bunny Bucket Buttress.

Part way up this line of bolts the two climbers stopped and improvised
a belay (using a single bolt) while sitting on a ledge. Mr
Kaczorowski started to lead the next section but stopped and clipped
directly into the first bolt (with a quickdraw to his belay loop). He
then pulled some slack and was attempting to “stick-clip” the next
bolt. At this time the first bolt pulled completely out of the rock
and he fell past the ledge and his belayer. Subsequently his rope ran
through and was completely cut by a sharp V-shaped notch of ironstone
(a thin layer of hard, protruding rock often present in Blue Mountains
sandstone). The rope was about two years old, a little faded but not
noticeably furry or worn looking and had never been stored near or
exposed to solvents. No longer connected to the belay the man fell
more than 150m to the base of the cliff. Nearby climbers raised the
alarm and helped the man’s climbing partner to safety. The man was
pronounced dead by ambulance paramedics later that day. His body was
recovered by police officers and the police helicopter around 11am on
the 3rd January.

Editor comments

Expansion bolts are generally not advised for use as permanent
fixtures in Blue Mountains sandstone climbs. They are prone to working
loose over time, perform poorly under tension (pull out force) and the
nuts often need tightening before use. Expansion bolts are often used
by those establishing a new climb as a temporary measure before more
appropriate bolts are placed.

Climbs in the Grose Valley are often long and have a higher level of
hazards such as loose rock, difficult access and remoteness compared
to other more popular cliffs in the Blue Mountains. Route finding is
often difficult.

“Stick-clipping” involves the use of a long stick to clip the lead
rope to an out-of-reach bolt; it is often used to clip the first bolt
on a sport climb before leaving the ground. It is rarely used mid-
climb because a loop of slack lead rope is usually used in the process
and this can lead to a longer fall if the climber falls mid-process.
Issues of force on the belay are more complex as this extra slack can
actually reduce the “fall factor” (distance fallen divided by length
of rope absorbing the energy of the fall).

LEVEL 4 REPORT