Indian-origin techie among 3 killed in tragic climbing accident in US
New York, May 15 (PTI): Indian-origin techie Vishnu Irigireddy was among the three persons killed in a tragic climbing accident in Washington state's North Cascades Range of western North America.
Vishnu, 48, a resident of Seattle, was attempting to climb North Early Winters Spire area of the Cascades along with his three friends, Tim Nguyen, 63, Oleksander Martynenko, 36 and Anton Tselykh, 38, on Saturday when the accident happened, NBC News reported.
The group noticed a storm coming and started to retreat when at some point during their descent, the team’s anchor point failed and sent the group plunging 200 feet down, Climbing website reported.
Tselykh, the sole surviving climber, miraculously survived the dangerous fall and drove 64 kilometres to inform the authorities about the accident that killed his three friends.
Vishnu’s friends and family describe him as an experienced climber “who found joy and purpose in nature.”
“Originally from India and a proud member of Seattle’s vibrant tech and cultural community, Vishnu built a life that reflected his values—integrity, compassion, and a relentless pursuit of growth,” a note by family and friends on remembr.com website said.
According to a notice for his cremation ceremony, to be held on Thursday, his friends and family would be making donations to two non-profits to honour Vishnu, who they said had “developed an intense passion for mountaineering and climbing throughout his life.” They also made an appeal to others to donate to those charitable organisations till May 22.
Vishnu was working as Vice President of Engineering at Fluke Corporation, a test equipment manufacturing company in the Greater Seattle Area.
His company described him as an extraordinary leader in a statement released after his death adding that his loss “felt profoundly” across the organisation.
Tselykh is currently in hospital and is being treated for internal bleeding and a traumatic brain injury.
North Early Winters Spire, a granite peak in the Liberty Bell group of the North Cascades, is popular among experienced climbers.
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Prime organiser of Messi event in Kolkata arrested over ‘mismanagement’ after stadium chaos
Kolkata (PTI): The police on Saturday arrested Satadru Datta, the prime organiser of the Lionel Messi football event at Salt Lake Stadium here, following widespread chaos at the venue, which prompted the Argentine World Cup-winning captain to leave the field early.
Taking suo motu cognisance of the stadium unrest, Datta was held by the Bidhannagar Police for “mismanagement” of the event from the Kolkata airport, where he had gone to see off Messi and his entourage on their way to Hyderabad.
"We are looking into whether there was any mismanagement from the organiser's side, which led to the chaos at the stadium. He has been detained, and the police have now brought the situation under control," West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar said at a press conference.
A senior police officer later confirmed that Dutta has been arrested. Till reports last received, the police were interrogating him and his manager inside one of the departure lounges of the airport.
The organiser has given in writing that he will refund the prices of tickets he sold to the disappointed spectators, Kumar said.
What was supposed to be a marquee football spectacle turned into widespread violence and disorder at the stadium after Messi’s brief and tightly ring-fenced appearance, his first at the venue since 2011, left large sections of the crowd frustrated, as they failed to catch a glimpse of their superstar despite having travelled from far and wide, paying hefty sums for tickets.
Police said they were also investigating how organisers allowed sale of bottled waters and beverages inside the stadium premises, which are banned items during such events.
Thousands of water bottles were used as missiles and lobbed inside the pitch by angry spectators, who also uprooted bucket seats from the gallery and used them as ammunition inside the field against the defending police and security personnel.
Spectators alleged that water bottles were being sold at a massive premium inside the stadium despite police disallowing such items from outside at the entry gates.
Police agreed there was an underlying tension in the galleries on account of Messi not showing his footballing skills on the field, which only got aggravated after a bunch of VIPs, including State Sports Minister Aroop Biswas and unidentified people, blocked the football icon’s view during the limited time he spent on the ground.
“We are on the job, and will ensure that whoever is responsible for what happened today at Salt Lake Stadium will be punished, and action will be taken against the authorities concerned,” said Jawed Shamim, ADG, Law and Order.
