Sherpas First to Summit Everest in Three Years, Rescues and Death on Makalu

Nine Sherpas are first climbers to stand on Mount Everest in three years were. They were in charge of fixing ropes and were led by a Nepali Sherpa. They are the first climbers to reach the summit since a fatal avalanche in 2014 and earthquake disaster in 2015. The nine-man team fixed the final ropes along the Southeast Ridge. “Sherra Gyalgen Sherpa reached the top of Sagarmatha at 5:05 p.m. (local time),” said Ang Tshering Sherpa, chief of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, using the mountain’s Nepali name.

The team had to wait out poor conditions before reaching the top. Mountaineer Alan Arnette said that around 100 people were hoping to make a summit bid between May 14 and 16. In 2013, nearly 700 climbers reached the summit.

During the summit day, four other Sherpas rescued two Slovakian climbers who were trapped by an avalanche at 7,200 m on the big Southwest Face. “We have been given a second lease of life by those brave boys,” team leader Strba is quoted as saying. Mingma Sherpa of Seven Summit Treks whose four sherpas rescued the Slovaks said, “It is an answer to all commentators, especially to the international expedition operators, who explicitly raised questions over the capability of Nepali companies including Seven Summit which started handling a large number of expeditions on its own.

“Four mountain guides among 400 present in the region stood ahead to commence such a risky job because they know what the real climbing is, in this modern age. Our guys have really done an incredible job.” The Sherpas worked all day to rescue the climbers and return them to Camp II from where they were airlifted to Kathmandu for treatment. The trapped climbers were hanging off an ice screw for several hours. “We had fixed the ropes (nearly 700 metre long) along the risky slope before bringing the climbers back to the safer place,” the rescuers said.

On Makalu, two Nepali guides died of altitude sickness this week. Parsuram Karki of the Thamserku Expedition tour agency said the two men had complained of altitude sickness on Tuesday night at Camp II, located at 6,700 metres, but died as their team members were helping them down. “Their bodies have been brought to the base camp,” the agency said.