Jason Kennison: Perth man dies on descent from Mt Everest

By Press RoomMay 21, 20232 Mins Read

A 40-year-old Perth man has died on Mount Everest during a climb to raise money for charity.

Jason Kennison, a South Australian living in Perth, died during the descent down the mountain on Friday morning after earlier summiting.

His father was notified of his son’s death on Sunday. The cause of death has not been revealed and Mr Kennison’s body is yet to be recovered.Mr Kennison had trained in Nepal for the previous six weeks and was taking on Mt Everest to raise funds for Spinal Cord Injuries Australia.

At the age of 23, Mr Kennison was in a car accident which left him with injuries to his femur and shoulder.

He had to learn to walk again and said on his Just Giving page he became depressed following the accident.

“My recovery journey was slow, but after a year of battling depression, countless hours of rehab and self-driven motivation, I started to see improvements both mentally and physically,” he wrote.

“I first began to regain function in my arms and legs, and slowly started to learn to walk again.”

The South Australian, who had been living in Perth, became “unresponsive” at the summit. Credit: Facebook/Facebook

An Australian climber has died on Everest, his expedition organiser said on Sunday, in the 10th fatality on the world’s highest peak this climbing season. Jason Bernard Kennison, (40, left) who reportedly survived a bad car crash in 2006, died after becoming unwell on Friday, Asian Trekking said.
The South Australian, who had been living in Perth, became “unresponsive” at the summit and was brought down to the Balcony area below the peak, Asian Trekking chief Dawa Steven Sherpa told AFP. — The South Australian, who had been living in Perth, became “unresponsive” at the summit. Credit: Facebook/Facebook

Three years ago after suffering from progressive back pain, Mr Kennison had to undergo a routine spinal procedure.

The procedure did not go as planned, resulting in nerve damage, which required Mr Kennison to learn how to walk yet again.

“It was tough to accept that once again, I felt back at square one and another setback to overcome,” he wrote.

“With the same mindset and resilience that I had adopted in the past, I again committed to rehab and physio, learning to walk again after an extended time off work.”