Francesco Marchetti died on Mount Everest on Sunday. Credit:Facebook Mr Marchetti was an experienced climber who lived in Mackay, where he worked at Central Queensland University as a technical teacher and supervisor. Mackay mayor Greg Williamson, who had known Mr Marchetti for more than 30 years, said he was a stalwart of the community, and news of his death was simply "devastating". "He is among the most principled, honest, driven men I have ever met," Mr Williamson said. "We knew he was making another attempt at the summit after an earthquake finished his last one [in 2015].

Francesco Marchetti and his wife, Sandra. Credit:Facebook "When he came back in 2015, he said 'I'm going back. It will be my last attempt'. "One of the passions of his life was to get to the top of Everest. He's a guy that is not super rich, he devoted a lot of his spare income to actually fulfilling that passion, and he had the support of [his wife] Sandy and the family Frank Marchetti was an experienced climber and hiker. Credit:Facebook "We can only hope that he made it [to the summit]. That was what his life's ambition was.

"It is a very, very sad day and our thoughts are now with Frank's family. He was always happy, always positive, always had a tremendous outlook on life. He was one of those guys who was a pleasure to know." Mackay resident Kylie Porter wrote online that she had known Mr Marchetti and his wife "for most of my adult life and today's news completely broke my heart. Our community is a poorer place today with the loss of Frank." Another person described Mr Marchetti as a "local icon". "Such an honorable man with great ambition! RIP to such a local icon. Condolences to Sandy and family," wrote Carissa Mansfield. Mr Marchetti and his wife of 30 years were keen travellers and ran their own website, on which they documented their adventures.

"Francesco and Sandy have [been] travelling in earnest since 2008 with at least one big trip per year," it says. The website says Mr Marchetti supervised a team of professional educators between Mackay and Gladstone in central Queensland. "Francesco has also enjoyed a long career in the Army Reserve and currently enjoys trekking and climbing in challenging terrain," it says. Mr Marchetti had previously climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, and hiked the Kokoda Track and Inca trail. He had climbed in the Himalayas three times, before his summit attempt this year. Mr Marchetti previously attempted to climb to the summit of Mount Everest in 2015, but abandoned that expedition when a devastating earthquake struck Nepal.

On that trip, he had guided a group of Mackay residents to Everest Base Camp in a tour organised through a local travel agent. Before that trip, he gave a presentation to the group on acclimatisation and altitude sickness. At the time of the earthquake, Mr Marchetti told the Mackay Daily Mercury that he was on the mountain when the earthquake struck, and an avalanche hit. "We heard a rock fall avalanche off to our side and felt the ground shake [and] we took cover behind a small ridge and watched the rocks whiz toward us," he said. "The majority of them stopped well short of us, but a few of the larger boulders crossed the track in front of us." Before setting off on that expedition, Mr Marchetti told the ABC that he had wanted to climb Everest since he was 12, when he read a book about the mountain.

He had planned to climb from the north side of the mountain, known as the Old Mallory route, named after English mountaineer George Mallory. "The north side was attempted to be pioneered in 1920 and they found it very difficult because you had to be very high for a long time on the summit ridge," Mr Marchetti said in 2015. "I am certainly well equipped and well prepared for the physical side of the climb, it is just a matter of being healthy and fit, and in the right place at the right time when the appropriate weather window makes itself available," he said. Fairfax Media has contacted the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade for comment.