Dan Fredinburg, the Google executive who was killed over the weekend by an avalanche on Mount Everest following the massive earthquake in Nepal, spoke to TIME.com two years ago about braving extreme altitude, mudslides and earthquakes to make the views from the planet’s highest peaks available to everyone with an Internet connection. “Different adventurers and people who want to explore from the comfort of their homes have the opportunity to explore and see these different corners of the world.” Fredinburg told TIME in March of 2013, when Google Maps’ Street View launched a collection of interactive galleries featuring the world’s tallest mountains — such as Tanzanaia’s Mount Kilimanjaro and Argentina’s Aconcagua — for which he helped collect images.