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BOY, 12, DIED TRYING TO SAVE SKI TRIP PAL

Hayden was a pupil at The Howard School

Wednesday February 20,2008

By Mark Reynolds

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A 12-YEAR-OLD boy fell to his death in the Austrian Alps trying to save his friend.

Last night the heartbroken mother of Hayden Waller paid tribute to the “the most lovable child in the world”.

He broke his neck and suffered severe head injuries after plunging down a chasm with Roger Whitlow, 12, during a school skiing trip.

Roger was slipping down the ravine when Hayden tried to grab him. The pair then plunged down a vertical cliff.

While Hayden suffered terrible injuries, Roger’s fall was broken by a tree. He is being treated for serious injuries.
The pair and three other schoolfriends were climbing to a wooden hut perched precariously on the side of a mountain and were wearing trainers with little grip.

The pupils, aged between 12 and 14, were on a trip with the Howard School, a specialist sporting comprehensive in Rainham, Kent. Hayden’s parents, Gary, 35, and Hayley, 31, from Wigmore, Kent, were last night flying out to the region.

Mrs Waller said: “No one should be blamed.” She added that Hayden was an adventurous boy and had been excited about the trip.

“Everyone loved him,” she said. “He was the most lovable lad you have ever come across. We are devastated.”

Hayden and his friends are thought to have decided on their climb without their teachers’ knowledge.

The holiday adventure at Mallnitz in the Austrian state of Carinthia included a trek through thick forest crossed by vast crevasses and gorges.

After the accident, Hayden was found to have fallen 33ft. The other boys called for help and two teachers rushed to the scene but the location was so dangerous they needed help to get back to safety.

Firemen had to use high-powered lights to guide in a rescue helicopter to recover the boys from the ravine in darkness and high winds on Monday evening.

Paul Morris, head teacher of the Howard School, said: “Everyone is devastated. We are arranging for them all to return home.”

An investigation will now probe why the boys were roaming alone in a dangerous area. The hut to which the boys were climbing sits 650ft above their ski resort.

Austrian police chief Horst Wohlgemuth said: “No adult would walk through that dense forest at this time of year. It was probably the kids’ adventurous spirit that took them there.

“It was daylight when the boys left but in winter it gets dark in minutes.”

Hayden’s aunt Nicola Little, 37, said: “He was a happy, popular cheeky chap. He loved Chelsea FC and went to all the games with his dad.

“His parents are in a dreadful state. His 11-year-old brother Aaron has flown out with them.”