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

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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Donlon was beginning his descent from an anchor point backed up by additional safety protections when the rock likely gave way, authorities said on Tuesday.

Matsuda was attached to the same anchor, causing both students to fall. Investigators have not determined exactly how far they plunged, AP said.

The pair had set out from the college's Leadville campus, initially planning to climb nearby Ice Mountain before apparently changing their destination to West Apostle Mountain, according to authorities.

Autopsies determined that both students died instantly from multiple blunt force injuries, while authorities said the severe snowstorm was not a direct factor in their deaths.

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Investigators found no obvious mistakes in the students' preparation for the climb, according to the Chaffee County Sheriff's Office.

"In most similar cases that have led to a devastating conclusion we find it easy to pick apart what was done wrong," Chaffee County Sheriff Andy Rohrich said, according to AP.

"That was not the case with Kaden and Jackson."

Rohrich also expressed relief that neither student suffered in their final moments. 

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"While their lives were far too short, they spent their final moments together surrounded by the majestic beauty of Chaffee County’s high peaks that they loved," he said.

"There is also relief knowing neither of them suffered."

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Both students shared a passion for the outdoors, according to AP. 

Matsuda was studying to become a wildland firefighter, while Donlon was studying outdoor recreation leadership.

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Matsuda was from Ridgway, Colorado, while Donlon was from Queensbury, New York.

Other fatal climbing accidents have occurred in recent months.

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Earlier this summer, elite rock climber Jake Whisenant, 30, died from blunt force injuries sustained in a fall at California's Sequoia National Park.

In another accident, three Latvian mountaineers died, while a fourth was critically injured after falling near Denali Pass on Alaska's Mount McKinley earlier this year.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.