The man who died when his car left the Tasman Valley Rd in Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park on Tuesday has been named. He was Mark Roland Ellis (23), of Christchurch.
Police said Mr Ellis, who planned to go climbing in the park with his brother, was driving to Mt Cook Village to retrieve climbing gear when he lost control of his vehicle about 7.30am.
His vehicle came off the gravel road and went down a hill about 2m. He was thrown from the vehicle and found dead at the scene by a Department of Conservation ranger at 8.48am.
Mr Ellis was the son of David and Jane Ellis, who run clothing and outdoor equipment company Earth Sea and Sky, and the grandson of the late Murray Ellis, who ran Dunedin company and Ellis family business, Arthur Ellis and Co.
