Mount Fuji in Japan is an active stratovolcano located on the island of Honshū, at the Shizuoka Prefecture.
With a summit elevation of around 3.7 kilometers, it's the tallest mountain in Japan, the second-highest volcano located on an island in Asia, and seventh-highest peak of an island on Earth.
The mountain has a unique symmetrical cone, which is covered in snow for about five months each year.
As a cultural icon of Japan, and that it has long been depicted in art and photography, the mountain is worldwide famous, and that it's frequently visited by tourists, hikers and climbers, from both Japan and from people around the world.
In fact, according to the UNESCO, Mount Fuji has "inspired artists and poets and been the object of pilgrimage for centuries."
The view there can be breathtaking, and indeed it can be "breathtaking."
Tetsu Shiohara was a man from Japan.
On the 28th of October, 2019, he was livestreaming on the Japanese video-sharing website NicoNico with the title "Let's Go to Snowy Mt. Fuji."
He climbed the mountain, interacted with his viewers, and is seen commented about the amount of snow he saw. It was also so cold that he complained about not bringing disposable heating pads with him.
The summit of Mount Fuji was only a stone's throw away, that he suddenly lost his footing, and began slipping.
The snow was thick, but the ice was even more slippery.
Shiohara continued slipping, before falling down a slope.
The man fell to his death.
Shiohara died in a lonely death, in ice cold weather.
The witnesses he had, was his viewers.
Upon realizing the fact that Shiohara slipped and that the livestream ended, viewers of his broadcast quickly reported the incident to the police.
Shiohara's dead body was found 2 days later, on October 30, by search parties. But it took another few days before he was identified.
This happened because the body was so battered and damaged that it was difficult to recognize Shiohara.
It's said that Shiohara was found around 2 kilometers from the summit, about 800 meters from the Taiyokan Mountain Hut, which is the seventh station of the mountain.
Due to his condition and the temperature of the surrounding, It's unknown how long Shiohara was alive during and after the fall, or if he was killed on impact.
His case was publicized worldwide due to him unintentionally livestreaming his death.
The authorities who confirmed Shiohara's death, noted that the man was climbing Mount Fuji during its dangerous offseason, where the snow cover presents significant hazards to climbers.
Shiohara was found to have climbed Mount Fuji the previous month on the 7th of September before the offseason began. Additionally, records found that he had taken a train from Tokyo to Mount Fuji's seventh station before beginning his ascent.
While attempts were made to remove and archive Shiohara's livestream, videos of the moment he began to slip spread worldwide through the internet.
There is even a whole video of it, which is more than hour long.
While it wasn't the first time Shiohara climbed the mountain, Shiohara wasn't really a climber, and that he also lacked climbing experience.
In fact, it's said that Shiohara ascended to the summit without proper climbing gear and that he reportedly wore regular street wear.
Through his video, it's suggested that he only brought a pair of climbing poles, a pair of inadequate gloves and his smartphone as part of his equipment for the ascent.
A year later, Shiohara was awarded the 2020 Darwin Awards.
He became the first Japanese person to ever win the award, which the website states, is presented to those who died in "an extraordinarily idiotic manner."
The Darwin Awards laud individuals who sacrifice their own lives for "improving our species’ chances of long-term survival," the website said.
"Continuing social media commentary as he juggles climbing poles and smart phone in his frostbitten mitts, Tedzu demonstrates a classic case of misplaced priorities when he states that despite numb extremities, he ‘MUST continue to operate’ his livestream,” Darwin Awards organizers said.