Top rope auto belay accident what happened. " This month, we cover an increasingly common gym accident involving an auto belay; and the risk of rock fall at outdoor crags. Oct 21, 2021 · If it was the webbing, or lanyard, it seems disingenuous for them to suggest it was an "auto-belay failure". In 2014, conservationist Mark Hesse died in a similar accident in Colorado. Though fatal accidents at indoor climbing gyms are extremely rare, there have been multiple cases involving auto-belays. The belayer will use a belay device such as an ATC to control the rope. Also in 2021, a 73-year-old man was seriously injured at a gym in Poland Jan 15, 2024 · And almost all of these injuries are less serious than injuries from climbing on top rope, lead, or auto belay. I probably wouldn't be climbing at this particular gym again until I knew exactly what caused the accident to happen. I At my university gym, one of the wall employees was getting some late night crag action on an autobelay. The researchers were surprised at the incidence of injuries from top-rope climbing, as top-rope was assumed "safer" than lead climbing or Jun 29, 2025 · An auto belay climbing route is a type of route that allows climbers who may not have a climbing partner to climb top rope style routes. She's okay now but our gym is closed all year because of it. Sep 23, 2016 · One of the main elements in the auto belay set-up that is different from regular top rope climbing, is the absence of a partner. However, the most serious incidents reported in indoor climbing gyms — death, becoming paralyzed, and other severe forms of bodily harm — tend to happen on ropes and auto-belays. She slipped and felland kept falling. Reply reply animalwitch • Last night I was leading and was hanging when i looked over at another climber friend about to reach for the finishing move on a fifty foot wall. In the auto belay scenario you lack an extra set of eyes. She broke both femurs and her hips. The carabiner somehow got pushed up against a hold and unclipped from the belay loop leaving the climber stranded mid-route. Mar 3, 2025 · What happened? A few weeks ago, a climber in the Netherlands was pretty badly injured when the webbing (!) of an auto belay apparently snapped, causing them to fall from approximately 8 meters. ). Most of the accidents have happened when climbers were well into their climbing session. Jun 21, 2021 · Another time it happened to me, I tied the rope to just one loop of my harness and another guy pretty much yelled at me to get my head out of my ass. I’ve seen outside almost-accidents like this esp if belayer isn't wearing belay gloves, is used to using a grigri, or the rope is new/super slick. Oct 25, 2021 · On September 3, a 73-year-old man was seriously injured at Makak Climbing Arena in Warsaw, Poland, falling 30 feet after his autobelay line broke. There are countless ways to have a bouldering accident that results in a non-fatal injury, not so much in top rope. Photo: masT3rOD /Flickr; CC BY 2. If your belayer primarily topropes indoors, those are almost always heavy and slow/thick ropes. . even if the cause of the accident was failure to use the auto-belay altogether. (The precise circumstances of the June 12 accident at Ascent Studio Climbing & Fitness are still unknown. 0 Oct 22, 2021 · Today, a Sydney, Australia climbing gym removed its auto=belays in the wake of a recent death at the facility. A close call that I am aware of with an auto belay was due to someone's t-shirt and/or belay loop getting stuck in the carabiner gate and preventing the gate from fully closing and autolocking. What Is The Difference Between Auto Belay And Manual Belay? Manual Belay has two individuals involved: one will be the climber and the other will be the belayer who will support the climber by taking or feeding the rope. Hit the the top of the wall at 30 ft. The use of auto belays has been a hotly debated topic in the indoor climbing industry for the last 10 years. In September, after a four year long legal battle over an auto belay accident, Vertical World publicly announced a shocking $6m settlement. Oct 25, 2021 · A young man has passed away following a 43-foot fall off an autobelay-equipped route at Sydney Indoor Climbing Gym in Sydney, Australia. Sep 27, 2023 · Vertical World and C3 Manufacturing recently agreed to pay a climber $6 million, one of the largest settlements in the climbing gym industry’s history, following an auto belay accident. Feb 8, 2024 · An informal post on a climbing forum titled "Auto-belay Accident" is the most perfect, concise way to tell a reader, they are going to read about a climbing accident that occurred on an auto-belay. And unfortunately did not double check his partner, the auto belay. Jan 22, 2025 · Climbing Coach Recovering After Failing to Clip into Auto Belay Hector Diffut, 26, fell 30 feet from the top of an indoor wall after forgetting to clip into the auto belay. Moral of the story: you had a long day at work so you just want to get on that wall and climb, it's easy to get distracted. News article: Mountain Network - Ongeval These accidents are so common - a woman fell in our gym as well just a couple of weeks ago due to failing to clip in (luckily only minor injuries), and I really struggle to understand it. Most top rope accidents that we do see are lowering accidents. Do autobelays fail? While autobelays are safe if used properly, and current models Jan 25, 2023 · Your monthly dose of climbing accident analysis from the editors of "Accidents in North American Climbing. I've never used an auto belay, but I'd imagine your just clipping into a locking 'biner on the end of the rope. In 2021, a young climber died after falling 43 feet from an auto belay–equipped route in Sydney, Australia. Also in 2021, a 73-year-old man was seriously injured at a gym in Poland, falling 30 feet Nov 22, 2022 · Though auto belay accidents happen every year, deaths are uncommon. How is it possible to go up without having a rope attached to you? Wouldn't you notice it? Whenever I go on the autobelay I check that I'm still attached in the beginning, at least once on the way up and Feb 8, 2024 · In the case of this accident, the belayer’s device unclipped from his harness just as the leader fell. ANALYSIS Though fatal accidents at indoor climbing gyms are extremely rare, there have been multiple cases involving auto-belays. When things go wrong enough on top rope such that you would call it an “accident”, it tends to be pretty bad. The auto belay systems remove the need for a belay partner entirely. Sep 23, 2016 · It defies logic, but experienced climbers continue to simply not attach themselves to the auto belay device, climb to the top of the wall, lean back and fall to the ground. She was a foot or two above the last clip and was at the anchor after this final move. One of the main elements in the auto belay set-up that is different from regular top rope climbing, is the absence of a partner. , trusted the auto belay and decked. Odds of that happening? Nearly impossible odds, but in climbing we need to account for the unexpected and use stringent safety measures including double checking that our belay device is locked on. When the auto belay is my partner, I do double checks with the auto belay before I leave the ground just as I would with a human partner. That's what my belay device did the whole time I knew it before the fatal fall and I assume that had something to do with its failure (edited to reframe in answer of original post! thanks for giving me this space to air my grievances!) Aug 4, 2016 · If this was one of those non-permanent walls (almost cylindrical in shape with 4/5 auto belays around it) they often have a metal bar at the top through which the rope runs and leads the rope a good 2 ft away from the wall (at the top). Climbing is inherently dangerous, and you can die in any way possible. Oct 29, 2018 · Lead Belaying Mistakes Account for Climbing Accidents Most of the injuries in lead and top-rope climbing were due to belaying mistakes at 10 cases out of 23 lead/top rope climbing accidents logged. Ironically, Johnston has been pushing for better auto belay practices for years. Being fearful of such accidents, I squeeze check the biner, pull check the auto belay rope and sometimes even jump off at 2 meters or so just to make sure I’m clipped in / the system is working. ” So this crazy thing happened to me while speed climbing. Putting the 'biner through both the leg loop and the waist loop would tri-load the 'biner, and placing it only through the waist loop could risk a back injury. Oct 27, 2022 · Bryan concurs. At first reluctant to host auto belays in his gyms, he compromised with a stringent and required belay check that all members who wish to use the auto belays must undergo. We first responded by removing our Perfect Descent auto belays (Perfect Descent was a defendant in Jun 21, 2021 · The innocent lapses in attention that lead to auto-belay accidents are also to blame for top-rope and lead climbers who forget to finish their tie-in knots—mistakes with similarly dire consequences. Most auto-belay accidents are the result of individuals failing to completely clip into the device, or forgetting to clip in entirely. Several gyms in the United States have removed their autobelays in light of the accidents, such as Edgeworks Climbing+Fitness in Washington. Your two eyes are your only double-checking mechanism. Mar 3, 2025 · A few weeks ago, a climber in the Netherlands was pretty badly injured when the webbing (!) of an auto belay apparently snapped, causing them to fall from approximately 8 meters. Apr 24, 2023 · An auto belay is a mechanical device that is used in rock climbing to provide an effective and efficient way of lowering a climber to the ground after they have completed their climb. It reopens on Friday, Oct. Auto belay does not need a second person as it already has a braking system in-built into the device NB: If you get to the top of the belay and you have to yank the webbing to make it retract fully, tell the staff. Feb 8, 2024 · This is a climbing accident where the injured forgot to attach himself to a belay. Apr 21, 2025 · El siniestro tuvo lugar próximo a la hora 21:45 del domingo 20 de abril en el Anillo Perimetral que une a las rutas 8 y 26 de la ciudad de Melo, tomando conocimiento la policía por un llamado al 911. “We rarely have incidents happen with top roping, so compared to bouldering, auto belays, and lead climbing, it seems to be one of the safer forms of indoor climbing. This lawsuit really amped up the conversation. They eliminate the need for a climbing partner who belays the climber, belaying is manually controlling the rope to hold the climber… At my university gym, one of the wall employees was getting some late night crag action on an autobelay. Sep 21, 2023 · In 1994, he also served as one of the original board members for the Climbing Wall Association. Other than that, I'll just echo the advice to belay as tight as you can any time the climber is effectively on top rope, especially for up to 3 bolts or even 1/3 or 1/2 up the route. 22. Sources These are the prime sources for the part about it being a problem with the webbing (it was also covered in national media, though pretty briefly): 1. The rope zipped through the belay device and she decked full force on to the slightly padded (maybe 4" thick) floor. Bouldering injuries were primarily due to falls on the mat. ljpltmgr soe fwoeue ovwn nogb tmwqs fnqly zel vtcbzpx cyih
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