Nicolaus Marshall, left, Cathy Morth and an emergency responder wait for a helicopter to drop a cable to airlift Marshall, who was injured July 20, 2024, while climbing the Nadelhorn, a mountain in the Swiss Alps. The photo was taken by Malcolm Isbell, who taught mountaineering first aid at Ramstein Air Base in Germany for four years. (Malcolm Isbell)
Mountain adventure enthusiast Nicolaus Marshall is on the mend and already envisioning his next climb, after the quick wits of a civilian employee at Ramstein Air Base helped him out of an Alps-sized scare.
Video shot by Malcolm Isbell, a Defense Commissary Agency worker in Germany, shows his partner, Cathy Morth, with an injured Marshall and a rescue crew member waiting as a helicopter prepares a medevac from the nearly 14,200-foot-tall Nadelhorn.
An experienced alpinist who has taught mountaineering to airmen, Isbell was with the two others descending the mountain in Switzerland’s Pennine Alps on July 20 when Marshall, an event planner from Geneva, injured his shoulder in a nasty fall.
Morth was between Isbell and Marshall during the descent, so Isbell relayed first aid instructions to her while making his way toward them.
He and Morth had to disconnect Marshall’s rope and secure it to the side of the mountain to prevent him from falling any farther, Isbell said.
Once Isbell reached him, he kept Marshall calm and warm with blankets. Within minutes, Isbell was calling the rescue agency.
“I had a phone with double service that could connect to multiple international networks,” he said. “It was especially useful since we were so high up and near the Italian border.”
An Air Zermatt helicopter and a specialist from the Swiss rescue agency KWRO were dispatched to the scene. The helicopter was flying at an altitude of about 14,100 feet for the rescue, according to Dr. Fredy-Michel Roten, director of KWRO.
Marshall was airlifted to a clinic in Saas-Fee, a nearby resort town. Afterward, he was flown to Visp, which has a hospital. X-rays showed a dislocated shoulder. Doctors fixed him up and Marshall said he didn’t feel a thing.
Isbell and Morth completed their trek down the Nadelhorn and rested at a hostel until they received the call to pick up Marshall.
“This whole event really highlights the importance of knowing the environment and the safety procedures for anything you do,” Isbell said.
He now has his sights set on the Eiger, another peak in the Swiss Alps that has an elevation of just over 13,000 feet and overlooks the famous waterfall town of Lauterbrunnen.
Cathy Morth, left, is the climbing partner of Malcolm Isbell, who taught mountaineering first aid at Ramstein Air Base and other alpinists scale the side of the 14,200 ft. Mt. Nadelhorn in Switzerland. This photo was taken by Isbell, who later met with Nicolaus Marshall and fellow climbing enthusiast who would have an emergency Isbell and Morth attended to. (Malcolm Isbell)
As for Marshall, who met Isbell and Morth on the first day of the two-day ascent of the Nadelhorn and decided to join them, the good fortune has made him mindful.
“Ultimately, this reminded me not to climb alone,” he said. “Anything can happen when you least expect it, and it could have been a lot worse if no else was climbing that day.”
During his rehab, Marshall is going on hikes. He recently received certification from the Swiss Alpine Club to be a tour leader for hikes, according to his LinkedIn profile.
And he intends to resume mountain climbing once his shoulder is healed in September.
Stars and Stripes reporter Marcus Kloeckner contributed to this story.
