2 Climbers Fall Off Mountain in Niigata Pref.; 1 Rescued While Search Continues for Other

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:14 JST, September 28, 2025

UONUMA, Niigata — Two rock climbers fell off Mt. Echigo-Komagatake near the Oyu hot spring resort in Uonuma, Niigata Prefecture, on Saturday afternoon. One remains missing, while a helicopter rescued the other on Sunday.

One climber, in his 20s, became snagged on the slope but managed to call for help and was rescued. The police received a call from him at about 4:30 p.m. on Saturday. The missing man is a 52-year-old company employee from Setagaya Ward, Tokyo.

According to the Koide Police Station of the Niigata prefectural police, the rescued climber is from Sayama, Saitama Prefecture. The pair were climbing the 2,003-meter-high mountain on a rocky slope and reached an altitude of about 1,100 meters when they both fell.

The police are conducting a ground and aerial search for the missing climber.