Sharp carabiner and the result (not the carabiner and rope from the accident, but equipment used in a lab test by BD) © Black Diamond equipment

22 September, Mario Luginbühl and a friend went climbing at Magletsch, in the St.Gallen canton, Switzerland. Mario was trying to work out a sequence and took a controlled fall. This proved fatal as the fixed quickdraw had been worn sharp through extensive use and cut the rope right off, resulting in Mario falling 25 meters to his death.

The 37 year old mountainguide and geologist was, according to friends, a careful and serious climber. He was the president of the Rätikon Climbing Club and author of the Rätikon climbing guide.

Apparently the quickdraw was fixed in a steep spot where you would rarely fall and because of this it had only been worn in one direction, leaving a sharp edge instead of a rounded that would otherwise be result.

Beware of this when climbing on routes with fixed quickdraws.