Snowdonia death: Fiancee's tribute to 'soulmate' climber
- Published
The Idwal Slabs are a popular destination for climbing and scrambling
The "absolutely heartbroken" fiancee of a mountaineering instructor has paid an emotional tribute to her "soulmate" after he died in a climbing accident.
Tom Furey, 30, fell 150ft (46m) on Cwm Cneifion, Snowdonia on Saturday.
Mr Furey, from Wrexham, was flown by Coastguard helicopter to Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor but died from his injuries.
"I promise to fulfil our dreams Tom! I will love you forever! I'm so so sorry!" Katie Simmons wrote on Facebook.
Mr Furey was a qualified mountaineering and climbing instructor with 15 years experience, in addition to being a qualified winter mountain leader and expedition leader.
The alarm was initially raised by a father and 16-year-old son climbing the Idwal Slabs, after they spotted a man lying injured who had previously passed them.
Allow Facebook content?
This article contains content provided by Facebook. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Meta’s Facebook cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.
"Tom Furey - my fiance, my soulmate, my person, the absolute love of my life sadly passed away on 11 June following a climbing accident," wrote Ms Simmons.
'Unbelievably shocked'
"We cherished every day we had together, never missed a moment and told each other how much we loved each other every day.
"We are all unbelievably shocked and absolutely heartbroken but he was doing something he loved and that is what's important.
"You inspired so many people in the climbing and mountaineering world but also in everyday life and unbelievably in the water sports world too. We were all so lucky to have you come into our lives!"
Allow Twitter content?
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter’s cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.
North East Wales Search and Rescue, of which Mr Furey was a team member between 2010 and 2014, described him as a "cheerful and capable" man who passed on his skills to many.
Mr Furey, who ran an outdoor adventure company in Wrexham, had previously climbed and led expeditions across the world.
Chris Lloyd, of Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue, described Mr Furey as a "well-known and popular" local mountaineering professional, who was known to many of the rescue team.
"Our thanks go to the father and son who experienced this shocking event," said Mr Lloyd.
Conditions were blustery on the peak, but it is not clear yet how the fall occurred.
Allow Twitter content?
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter’s cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.
Related topics
- Published6 June 2022
- Published3 June 2022
- Published16 April 2022
- Published27 March 2022
- Published20 February 2022
