KATHMANDU: A 69-year-old US mountaineer died on Mount Everest, his expedition organiser confirmed the news.
This tragic death was the first foreign death reported this season on the highest mountain in the world.
The climber passed away on Monday while doing an acclimatisation rotation at Camp 2 at about 6,400 metres (21,000 feet).
He was not feeling well and died at Camp 2. According to Pasang Tshering Sherpa of Beyul Adventure, they are trying to bring his body back, but the weather is hampering the recovery attempts. International Mountain Guides, a US-based organization that plans expeditions, collaborates locally with Beyul Adventure.
Three Nepali climbers died on Everest last month, marking a terrible beginning to the spring climbing season. As part of a supply expedition, the group attempted to cross the treacherous Khumbu icefall when a block of glacier ice fell and washed them into a narrow crevasse. Since the majority will require a guide, Nepal has already issued 466 permits to foreign climbers, and this season, which lasts until early June, more than 900 people will attempt to summit.
This can generate bottlenecks and high traffic on the way to the top once more, especially if there is a smaller window for climbing due to bad weather. On the highest peak in the world, about five climbers every year pass away on average. However, 11 people passed away in 2019, four linked to the year’s overcrowding. Every spring climbing season, when temperatures are warm and winds are typically calm, hundreds of adventurers flock to Nepal, home to eight of the world’s ten highest peaks.
