ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Three climbers fell to their deaths in a popular part of the Sandia Mountains, tethered together as they plunged down a steep cliff.
The bodies of the three health professionals were recovered early Tuesday.
The bodies were spotted Monday about 800 to 900 feet below 10,678-foot Sandia Crest east of Albuquerque. Don Gibson, state police field coordinator, estimated the climbers fell 150 to 300 feet on Sunday.
They were all still roped together, said Rick Goodman, search and rescue coordinator in Santa Fe.
The climbers died in an area known as Muralla Grande, a popular rock climbing site in Chimney Canyon.
"It's a very steep canyon," said Karen Carter, a U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman.
Coincidentally, the area in the Cibola National Forest is to be closed to public access Thursday because of fire danger.
The victims were identified as Glenn Tietgen, 35, chief resident in psychiatry at University Hospital in Albuquerque; Carlos Abad, 26, from Colombia, an intern in psychiatry at University Hospital; and Jane Tennessen, 33, a clinical supervisor at the Santa Fe Rape Crisis Center.
