BURIED ALIVE

Mountain Climber Found in Ice 22 Years After Avalanche Took His Life

American William Stampfl and two friends went missing in 2002 attempting to climb Mount Huascarán in Peru.

Peruvian police just discovered and recovered the frozen body of an American hiker who went missing 22 years ago. Per the Guardian, the body of William Stampfl, 58, was found Friday after he and two friends, Steve Erskine and Matthew Richardson, went missing in 2002 attempting to climb Mount Huascarán, a more than 22,200 ft ascent. Stampfl’s body was found 17,060 feet above sea level and could be identified through preserved clothes and a driver’s license. The men perished in an avalanche that buried their bodies. Erskine’s body was recovered soon after the avalanche, and Richardson has never been found. A Los Angeles Times article from 2002 sheds more light on the men’s lives. Per the paper, if he had reached the top, Stampfl would’ve left behind origami turtles, an item that symbolized his wife. It was a running joke,” Stampfl’s wife told the paper. “Since I couldn’t go, the turtles went instead.”