Mount Everest has been experiencing huge crowds this year due to smaller windows during which the climb can be attempted. A guide named Vinayak Malla recently shared on Instagram how the summit ridge 'felt different than previous experiences on the mountain.' Many cornices and rocky sections were covered in soft snow and weather stations were half buried in snow. The traffic was also movie slowly, during which a cornice collapsed a few metres ahead of them. He said, "There was also a cornice under us. As it collapsed, four climbers nearly perished, yet were clipped onto the rope and self-rescued. Sadly, two climbers are still missing. We tried to traverse yet it was impossible due to the traffic on the fixed line." His climb was on May 21.
Officials said more than 450 climbers have scaled Mount Everest from the Nepali side of the peak in the south this season. Three climbers were reported killed and four are still missing on Mount Everest this season, which ends in a few days. Most climbing of Everest and nearby Himalayan peaks is done in April and May when weather conditions are most favourable.
Two confirmed dead
Nepali climber Binod Babu Bastakoti and Kenyan climber Cheruiyot Kirui were confirmed dead near the Mount Everest summit. The body of Kirui was found on Mount Everest, said Khim Lal Gautam, a government official based at the base camp of the mountain. It was unclear when the body would be recovered because the oxygen level is low at that altitude and it's difficult for Sherpas to carry it down. Binod Babu Bastakoti from Pokhra suffered altitude sickness on his descent, at around 8,300 metres above the camp.
(With PTI inputs)
