33-year-old Calif. rock climber dies in tragic accident at Big Bear

Andrew Ferrarone, a 33-year-old software designer and engineer in San Diego, died earlier this month after falling at a popular rock climbing area near Big Bear in Southern California. 

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The San Bernardino County sheriff’s aviation unit responded to the Castle Rock area of Big Bear at 5:25 p.m. on July 12. Ferrarone “fell down a rocky slope and suffered head trauma,” the sheriff’s department said in a statement emailed to SFGATE. 

Ferrarone slipped from a ledge and fell 20 feet, San Diego’s KGTV-TV reported. His wife, a flight attendant, was with him and performed CPR on her husband. 

“CPR was initiated before Ferrarone was hoisted out and transported by air to [Loma Linda University Medical Center],” the sheriff’s department said. 

At the hospital, Ferrarone spent several days on life support, according to a GoFundMe organized by a family friend. 

The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said Ferrarone was pronounced deceased on July 15 at the hospital. 

Ferrarone is survived by his wife, who was identified on GoFundMe as Nina Kim and is 8 weeks pregnant, as well as his parents and siblings. Andrew and his brother and sister were triplets. 

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“I truly feel like I lost a part of myself,” said Caroline Menke, Ferrarone’s sister, in an interview with KGTV. “For the first time I know what it’s like to have my heart actually broken.”

The GoFundMe is asking for donations to support Ferrarone’s widow with “rent, a mountain of medical bills, and the costs of welcoming a child without Andy by her side,” the GoFundMe said. SFGATE reached out to the organizers of the GoFundMe but did not hear back before publication.

“Andy and Nina were known for their warmth and outgoing spirit, and the love they shared touched everyone around them,” the GoFundMe said.

According to an obituary, Ferrarone grew up in Pennsylvania and Georgia before moving west to San Francisco, where he lived for most of his 20s and met his wife. He lived in Lake Tahoe and then moved to San Diego. The obituary describes him as a talented software engineer who was also known for his “care, patience and thoughtfulness.” He was an avid rock climber, snowboarder and tennis player, with a range of hobbies from photography to jazz piano. 

“Andy is a pro-level rock climber,” said Brian Cox, a friend who organized the GoFundMe, in an interview with the San Diego Union-Tribune. “He’s an expert at his craft.”