Authorities pinpoint likely cause of 2 students' deaths after plunge off mountainside

Fox News · Andrea Margolis · 2026-11-05 20:45 UTC

Sheriff Andy Rohrich said college students Kaden Matsuda and Jackson Donlon died instantly and did not suffer in the West Apostle Mountain climbing accident.

Authorities have identified the likely cause of a fatal fall that killed two college students in the Colorado mountains last week, saying a rock securing their rappelling equipment likely gave way during their descents.

Kaden Matsuda, 19, and Jackson Donlon, 20 — both students at Colorado Mountain College — were found dead in a snow-filled basin on West Apostle Mountain, roughly 100 miles southeast of Aspen. They had failed to return from a weekend climbing trip, according to The Associated Press (AP).

The two were rappelling down the mountain when the accident occurred, according to findings released this week by the Chaffee County Sheriff's Office.

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