A Mountain Climb To Death
By Kim Ong - Dinh
Courage, stamina and determination brought Victorian police inspector
Paul Carr, 42, a father-of-four, to the Himalayan mountain, Cho Oyu which
lead him to death on May 14 this year.
Senior detectives Nick Farr and Jack Carmody and Senior Constable Mick
Harvey had joined Inspector Carr to form a Victoria Police expedition
tackling the world's sixth highest mountain to raise money for the Make-A-Wish
Foundation through a succeeding Everest climb.
Inspector Carr and Senior Detective Farr had made it to within 800m of
the 8201m Cho Oyu peak. Jack Carmody and Mick Harvey were further down
the mountain.
Inspector Paul Carr, died of a heart attack while attempting to climb.
He died so quickly and quietly that the colleague that he was sharing
his tent with, didn’t realize he was dead, until 45 minutes later.
It was assumed that he died of the climber’s disease altitude sickness,
but the true cause of death wasn't revealed until several days later
when an autopsy found one of Inspector Carr's coronary arteries was half
blocked by cardiovascular disease he had no idea he had.
Nepalese authorities released the body into the care of his three colleagues,
who insisted that they wouldn’t return home without him on May 23.
Paul Carr has been laid to rest at his favourite place, Apollo Bay.
His wife Julie told the Herald Sun, "It meant everything to me that
he was able to be brought back here to be buried."
" I couldn't bear the thought of him sitting up on the mountain, not that
he would mind."
Even though this climb was a climb to help raise money for the Make A
Wish Foundation, Paul Carr’s children will never have their father
in their lives again.
If he had stayed in Melbourne and not gone on this expedition, perhaps
he would still be alive today. He would’ve been a lot closer to
medical facilities that could have helped saved his life. His children
would have a father.
Paul Carr overestimated his health and thought he was stronger than he
really was, he put his life in jeopardy and lost it, all from climbing
a mountain for a good cause. But now his children will be forever more
wishing him to be there with them and not going onto the expedition.
Welcome to the
Ross Smith E-View!
NEW ISSUE
TERM 3 2003
Ross Smith students are again leading the world in on-line publishing after the school became one of the first to feature student-produced videos on their website as part of the literacy project in 1999.
The Ross Smith E-View was started this year after articles were put onto an international schools website with wired.com, but in 2002 Ross Smith has made a magazine on the net for themselves.