Kathmandu, May 2 (AFP\/APP):A US climber has died on Mount Everest, his expedition organiser said Tuesday, the first foreign death on the highest mountain in the world this season.<\/p>\n
The 69-year-old mountaineer was on an acclimatisation rotation at around 6,400 metres (21,000 feet) when he died on Monday.<\/p>\n
“He was feeling unwell and passed away at Camp 2. Efforts are underway to bring (back) his body,” Pasang Tshering Sherpa of Beyul Adventure told AFP.<\/p>\n
Sherpa said bad weather was hampering the recovery efforts.<\/p>\n
Beyul Adventure is a local partner of US-based expedition organiser International Mountain Guides.<\/p>\n
“It is with deep sorrow that IMG reports the death of one of our Everest 2023 team members at Camp 2,” IMG chief Eric Simonson said in a statement on the company’s website.<\/p>\n
“We can confirm that this event was not the result of a climbing accident or route condition that would be of potential impact or safety concern to any other teams on the mountain.”<\/p>\n
The spring Everest climbing season had a tragic start last month with the death of three Nepali climbers.<\/p>\n
The trio was crossing the treacherous Khumbu icefall as part of a supply mission when a block of glacial ice fell and swept them into a deep crevasse.<\/p>\n
Nepal has issued 466 permits to foreign climbers, and since most will need a guide, more than 900 people will try to summit this season, which runs until early June.<\/p>\n
This could result in heavy traffic and bottlenecks en route to the summit, especially if there is a shorter climbing window because of unfavourable weather.<\/p>\n
On average, around five climbers die every year on the world’s highest peak.<\/p>\n
But in 2019, 11 people died, with four of the deaths blamed on overcrowding that year.<\/p>\n
Nepal is home to eight of the world’s 10 highest peaks and welcomes hundreds of adventurers each spring, when temperatures are warm and winds are typically calm.<\/p>\n
Last month Northern Irish climber Noel Hanna, 56, died on Annapurna, the world’s 10th highest mountain, which has an even higher death rate than Everest.<\/p>\n
The 56-year-old adventurer was returning after a successful summit of the 8,091-metre (26,545-foot) peak when he died at Camp 4.<\/p>\n
A day later, record-holding Indian climber Baljeet Kaur, 28, and compatriot Arjun Vajpai, 30, were both rescued after a search lasting hours.<\/p>\n
Later, a third Indian climber, Anurag Maloo, 34, was rescued alive after falling 300 metres (985 feet) into a crevasse.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Kathmandu, May 2 (AFP\/APP):A US climber has died on Mount Everest, his expedition organiser said Tuesday, the first foreign death on the highest mountain in the world this season. The 69-year-old mountaineer was on an acclimatisation rotation at around 6,400 metres (21,000 feet) when he […]<\/p>\n
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