Authorities pinpoint likely cause of 2 students’ deaths after plunge off mountainside

Two Colorado college students died while rappelling from West Apostle Mountain after the rock holding their shared anchor likely gave way, authorities said. The findings offer a likely explanation for the accident, while investigators say they found no obvious errors in the pair’s preparation.

Kaden Matsuda, 19, and Jackson Donlon, 20, were found in a snow-filled basin after failing to return from a climbing trip. They had set out from Colorado Mountain College’s Leadville campus, initially planning to climb Ice Mountain. Autopsies found that both died instantly from multiple blunt force injuries; authorities said a severe snowstorm was not a direct cause.