True, there was still value in their operation. It was just a sad thing that someone died in the recovery process (only for the whole batch of cars to be written off).
Yeah, the death ofJohnson shocked me too, since it was so preventable and unnecessary. The story mentioned that every crew member had two carabiners, to be able to stay connected to a safety rope at all times. Apparently there was some moment that both Johnson's carabiners were loose the moment he slipped. It shows that in mountaineering, there is no margin for error.