Orem father and daughter hiking Everest safe, separated


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OREM — A man from Orem and his daughter hiking Mount Everest are reported to be safe, although they are separated at the moment.

They were in the same expedition group as a New Jersey woman, who was killed.

Randall Ercanbrack from Orem is a fruit farmer. During the offseason, he heads for the mountains. He and his daughter were on this adventure together, but are now with other climbers waiting to evacuate.

Ercanbrack’s last Facebook message to friend Kevin Warner said, “I’ve had a bad cough, dry air. Feeling better, going up five days up the ice fall.” That message came on April 22, 2:30 a.m.

“He tells me, see you soon, be careful,” Warner said with a laugh.

Ercanbrack was at the Mount Everest base camp when the deadly quake rocked Nepal.

“It’s about 110 miles away, thinking it’s not going to affect them,” said Warner. “And then yeah, all of a sudden, I found out there was an avalanche.”

Ercanbrack and his daughter are with Madison Mountaineering, a mountain guide service based in Seattle.

The base camp doctor, Marisa Eve Girawong, was among those killed.

“It’s beyond tragic,” Warner said.

According to dispatches from Madison Mountaineering, Ercanbrack is now at Gorak Shep, which is below base camp. The rest of the group, including Ercanbrack's daughter Haley, is at Everest Camp Two.

“They’re going to wake up and go to Camp One and hope to be evacuated by helicopter, but that’s not a real easy thing to do,” said Warner.

Warner has been following the developments closely and is waiting for any updates from Ercanbrack. The two bonded through their love for climbing.

Warner said, “We go up above the Y 500 feet higher, three mornings a week, year round.”

The two took a photo together on their last hike up the Y trail before Ercanbrack left on his adventure.

Warner says if anyone can get through this, it’s Ercanbrack.

Warner says it’s because of his friend that he was able to hike the more than 200-mile John Muir Trail that ends at Mount Whitney.

“I just had the experience of a lifetime, and I have to give Randall most of the credit for getting me ready for that experience,” Warner said.

Warner also said that this is the third time Ercanbrack has been to Mount Everest, but the first time he was hoping to reach the summit. He was excited to have his daughter along with him on the journey.

Madison Mountaineering has been posting dispatches on its website, with the latest updates.

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Sandra Yi

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