PERU: Tourist Robbed Of Camera, Renowned Climber Ueli Steck Dies

Magaly Lopez Garcia (photo), a Mexican tourist who was visiting the city of Huaraz suffered a terrible experience when a tour car that was heading towards the Llanganuco Lakes broke down.

While the passengers were waiting in the burning sun for a solution, someone ostensibly managed to grab her camera.

According to the tourist, it concerns a small black 10 megapixel Sony digital camera with a memory disk.

Although the Mexican tourist has left the city this morning, she still hopes that someone working in the tourism sector is able to get the camera back, although most important is the memory disk as it contains pictures of her trip through Peru.

Lopez Garcia declared to local broadcaster Canal 3 – Cable Andino that she was only half way when the bus broke down and that all tourists had to be transported by taxi to a restaurant before even having seen Chinancocha.

Adding on to this bad experience is that someone managed to steal her camera.

People that have information are kindly asked to go to the Tourist Police in Huaraz or to Agency Andean Sky Expeditions, which is the tour company she booked the tour with.

Meanwhile, The death of renowned climber Ueli Steck shocked the world and climbing community. The man nicknamed as the ‘Swiss Machine’ had been planning to ascend Everest and neighbouring Mount Lhotse next month but was killed after falling to the foot of Mount Nuptse.

According to Mingma Sherpa of the Seven Summit Treks Company that had organised the expedition, the 40-year-old was one of the most celebrated climbers of his generation but his engine stopped last Sunday.

The twice Piolet d’Or winner has also visited Huaraz in the past and climbed some of the surrounding mountains. In July of 2014, the Swiss climbed one of the most beautiful mountains in the world, the Alpamayo.

According to another source, the Swiss Machine did not only enjoy success in the Huaraz area as he got avalanched on Artesonraju twice during a 2014 attempt and did not summit.

Ueli Steck however, will be remembered as a true legend for those who had the opportunity to meet him.

Many people related to mountaineering and those working the tourism industry in Huaraz expressed their feelings and condolences on social networks.

Mountaineer and professional guide Beto Pinto Toledo told our newspaper that he felt sad hearing about the accident and that he met Ueli while climbing the Alpamayo a couple of years back.

I remember that he summited Alpamayo in two hours and 40 minutes, but he was so good that his partner couldn’t even follow him.

Eric Raul Albino Lliuya, professional mountain guide and sales manager of Peru Expeditions Tours in Huaraz, said to have met Ueli three years ago, also on Alpamayo.

A legend has gone, one of world´s best in mountaineering. What can you say? It´s really sad.

At the moment, mountaineer Victor Hugo Rimac from Huaraz is to be found in the same area and confirmed that he helped in the search mission. The climber said that everyone in Nepal feels really saddened.

Thanks to him and his motivation I started to climb mountains on my own. He was my hero.

A spokesman of Swiss mountaineer Ueli Steck confirmed to The Local that Steck will be buried in Nepal in presence of his relatives and close friends.