Death on Mt. Fuji

 

This is sad news. Last Friday, a 55 year old man who was descending Mt. Fuji with his wife, lost consciousness and died. Kazuhiko Asakawa, a company executive from Tokyo, began climbing Mt. Fuji at 6 am, from the 5th station on the Yamanashi side. He and his wife reached the summit about 5 pm, then began descending. Around 6 pm, near the 8th station, he began feeling unwell, then lost consciousness. His wife contacted a nearby mountain hut, and he was transported to the 5th station by mountain crawler. He was confirmed dead later. Police reported he had no external injuries from falling rocks or slipping. There were no other details reported.  

I can’t help wondering. Was it his dream to climb Fuji san? Did he have pre-existing health issues? How is his wife/climbing partner doing? Is it any consolation that they made it to the top and were descending when he started feeling unwell?