‘DEATH. CARNAGE. CHAOS.’
Climbers faced fatal delays at crowded peak
• Chatur Tamang was on his way to the roof of the world when he hit a traffic jam.
Ahead of him, on the final ascent to Mount Everest, he saw more than 100 people bunched together on the narrow ridge that leads to the summit — a place so high that it is known as the “death zone,” where the human body has trouble functioning.
Some of those descending from the summit pleaded desperately with those ascending to clear a way for them to pass since they had run out of oxygen. “That sent chills down my spine,” said Tamang, 45, a mountaineering guide who lives in Russia. He fears that if no action is taken, the crowds next year could be worse, with potentially greater fatal consequences.
At least 10 people died trying to reach the summit of the world’s tallest mountain this year, the deadliest climbing season for the peak in four years. One factor contributing to this year’s toll appears to have been crowding as scores of people attempted to ascend in a short window of good weather, producing delays that extended the time climbers spent at deadly altitudes.
In a long Facebook post, Ottawa climber and filmmaker Elia Saikaly described how climbers were having to pass a dead body on the way up the mountain.
“The early morning light had revealed the gateway to the summit of Everest and in parallel a human being who had lost his life. Here we all were, chasing a dream and beneath our very feet there was a lifeless soul. Is this what Everest has become?” he wrote.
“This poor human being perched 7000ft above the Western Cwm for everyone to observe was a reminder of each of our own mortality. Was this the ‘Dream of Everest’ we all imagined?
“My heart bled for the family and loved ones and at the same time I was conscious of the necessity to continue to move. At nearly 9000m above sea level, there is no choice but to carry on.
“Who is responsible here? The individuals? The companies? The Government? Is it time to enforce new rules? Will things ever change? What’s the solution here?
“With great sadness, as the cues pushed onwards and upwards, so did we, as did over 200 people that day.”
“Death. Carnage. Chaos” was how he described it on his Instagram account.
Ed Dohring, a doctor from Arizona, told the New York Times how at the summit — the size of two ping-pong tables — about 15-20 climbers were pushing and shoving to take selfies.
“It was like a zoo,” he said. Many of the deaths occur because climbers push themselves to the summit, often spending longer in the high altitude zones than is safe, and then collapse on the way down.
“The idea isn’t to push yourself to the ultimate maximum to reach the summit,” said Gordan Janow, director of programs at Alpine Ascents International. “Then there’s no steam or energy left in your body to get down.”
Last week, Don Cash, 55, of Utah, died after falling sick on the descent, possibly from the high altitude.
Anjali Kulkarni, an Indian mountain climber, trained for six years to make it to the top of Mount Everest, but died on the descent.
Officials in Nepal are now reviewing whether to change the way access to Everest works. Some experts say that the government should extend the climbing season in May or implement certain requirements for climbers, a number of whom lack experience or sign on with companies offering bargain-priced expeditions.
Nirmal Purja, an accomplished climber who is attempting to summit 14 peaks worldwide within seven months, was on his way down from the summit at Everest when he decided to stop and photograph the scene behind him. It was unusually cold, he said, and extraordinarily crowded.
“I’ve seen traffic, but not this crazy,” said Purja, who has summited Everest four times. Purja is among those who believe that the solution is to lengthen the traditional climbing season at Everest to spread out the climbers attempting to reach the summit.
The Nepali government granted 381 permits to climb the mountain this year, a record. At least double that number of people were on the mountain, since the figure does not include guides.