Wisconsin man falls to his death off Wyoming butte

A 21-year-old Wisconsin man trying to climb Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming fell to his death over the weekend. It was the seventh death in over a century of climbing at the butte.

At around 8 p.m. Sunday, Stewart Phillip Porter of Eau Claire was attempting to rappel part of the El Cracko Diablo route when he fell, leaving his climbing partner stranded, Devils Tower National Monument officials said in a release. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

“There wasn't any equipment malfunction whatsoever, but he was rappelling,” National Park Service Interpretation and Education Ranger Rick Strasser told the Casper Star-Tribune.

The stranded climber, unnamed by officials, was rescued later with the assistance of eight people from Devils Tower Lodge Climbing Guides and Buck Wild Climbing Guides.

“We do not have climbing rangers on duty at this time, as their season has ended. As soon as we figured out what was going on, we went to the local climbing community. … We were on duty until about 2 a.m. to get everything taken care of,” Devils Tower Superintendent Doug Crossen told Cowboy State Daily.

The fatal fall is under investigation.

Fellow climbers are mourning Mr. Porter’s death.

“That’s just a bad, bad deal. My condolences go out to Porter and his family. When something like that happens, it hits pretty hard in the climbing world. But it's real. And that’s why a lot of us do it — because it is real,” Leigh Lassle, a Gillette, Wyoming, climber told Cowboy State Daily.