At Japan’s Mt. Fuji, Body Found After Man Plummets to His Death While Live-Streaming

(TMU) — Japanese authorities have recovered the body believed to belong to the man who dramatically plummeted to his death as he livestreamed his climb up Mount Fuji.

On Wednesday, officers in Shizuoka—one of the two prefectures surrounding Japan’s highest peak—discovered the body, one day after receiving calls from viewers who witnessed the shocking live footage.

Rescue workers from the Shizuoka and Yamanashi prefectures launched the search early Tuesday before finding the body at an altitude of roughly 9,800 feet up the massive 12,389-ft mountain, which is the second-highest peak in Asia, according to the Independent.

Police have not yet confirmed that the body does belong to the live-streamer, reports NHK World.

In the livestream posted to Japanese video-sharing service Niconico under the title “Let’s Go to Snowy Mt. Fuji,” the climber can be seen ascending the slippery and dangerous volcano on Monday.

As the climber approaches the peak of the mountain along the side of a fence, he can be heard talking about the dangerous journey.

The climber remarked:

“Am I on the right track? So much of the route is covered with snow.” 

As he continues ambling up the ground coated in heavy snow, he said:

“My fingers are killing me. But I have to operate my smartphone. I should have brought a hot pack.”

While he makes his way up the path, it begins to grow narrower and steeper. The climber then said:

“Oh, this place is slippery, getting dangerous … I’m trying to walk by the rocks, yes, rocks. It’s a steep downhill.”

Suddenly, the climber remarks, “wait, I’m slipping,” amid the sound of him apparently falling down the icy slope.

The climber’s hiking sticks then hurtle away as the climber is seen falling down the side of the mountain before the footage abruptly ends.

The man is believed to have traveled to the snowy mountain from Tokyo, but authorities have yet to definitively establish his identity. However, a police helicopter did find marks after the man’s fall that appear to have been made by someone slipping from the location where he was believed to have been.

Mount Fuji has been closed to hikers since last month, and police have advised people to avoid the mountain due to its dangerous, snowy conditions, reports NHK World.