11 Climbers Have Died on Everest, 21 in Himalayas in 2019
Colorado climber Christopher John Kulish, 62, died on Monday after reaching the summit of Everest from the Nepalese side. Kulish died while descending to the south col at 7,900 metres. The family said in statement that they were “heartbroken” and that “Chris, who turned 62 in April, went up with a very small group in nearly ideal weather after the crowds of last week had cleared Everest.”
Everest has been making headlines around the world this season because of overcrowding, bad weather and a lot of deaths. At least 11 climbers have died on Everest this year and 21 in the Himalayas. The long lines on Everest are gone and the spring season is nearly over.
“With a single route to the summit, delays caused by overcrowding could prove fatal so I am hopeful my decision to go for the 25th will mean fewer people. Unless of course everyone else plays the same waiting game,” British climber Robin Haynes Fisher wrote on Instagram post on in early May before falling ill and dying.
Despite using supplemental oxygen, most people just cannot survive in the death zone for more than a few hours. Long lines have forced some people to be above 8,000 metres for up to 15 hours. The result has been a number of sudden deaths as a result of altitude sickness.
While the guides and Sherpas are highly skilled and certified, the organizers and expedition company leaders often aren’t. Since 1992, over 200 climbers have died on Everest, most of their bodies still under the snow and in the glaciers.
Himalayan Deaths 2019
Everest: Christopher John Kulish, 61
Everest: British Robin Haynes Fisher, 44
Everest: Nepali Dhurba Bista
Everest: Irish Kevin Hynes, 56
Everest: Indian Nihal Bagwan
Everest: Ernst Landgraf, 65
Everest: Indian Kalpana Das, 49
Everest: Indian Anjali S Kulkarni, 54
Everest: American Don Cash, 54
Everest: Indian Ravi Thakar
Everest: Irish Seamus Sean Lawless, 39
Makalu: India Dipankar Ghos, 52
Makalu: Sherpa Nima Tshering Sherpa
Makalu: Indian Narayan Singh
Makalu: Peruvian Richard Hidalgo, 52
Kangchenjunga: Indian Biplab Baidya, 48
Kangchenjunga: Indian Kuntal Karar, 46
Kangchenjunga: Chilean Rodrigo Vivanco
Lhotse: Bulgarian Ivan Yuriev Tomov
Cho Oyu: Phujung Bhote Sherpa
Annapurna: Wui Kin Chin, 48
A number of Canadians have reached the summit of Everest this year, including Elia Saikaly from Ottawa, Mark Ballard from Newfoundland, Mike Mulrooney from Nova Scotia and others.
It has been a tragic year on Everest, but there’s also been over 825 summits from climbers around the world. We’ll have a complete recap of the year once the last climbers are off the mountain.