🔗 Share this article

Rescue teams have escorted all of the remaining trekkers near the east-facing slopes of Everest in Tibet to a secure location, including hundreds of regional escorts and animal tenders, officials reported. This concludes one of the largest rescue and recovery efforts ever undertaken in the area.

Large-Scale Rescue Effort Completed

Hundreds of hikers were left stranded in deep snow over the recent weekend in the remote Karma valley, after an unusually fierce blizzard unleashed heavy snowfall across the territory.

Snow kept coming down throughout Saturday in the valley, which is located at an typical altitude of 4,200 meters (13,800 feet). By Sunday, rescue personnel had led approximately 350 hikers to safety.

Previous accounts had indicated that the remaining roughly 200 hikers were anticipated to reach safety by Tuesday.

In total, 580 hikers, along with more than 300 escorts, livestock herders, and other assistants were brought out, according to official reports released on Tuesday evening.

Survivors Describe Extreme Situations

One from China trekker recalled how their group had been “too anxious to sleep” on Saturday, as snow quickly piled up around their tents, forcing them to remove it every 90 minutes. They opted to descend on Sunday as the situation deteriorated.

“On the way, we encountered our guide’s father, who had come looking for him. That’s when we learned the snow was heavy in the valley, too; local residents, unable to contact their children on the mountain, were very anxious.”

Climbing Schedules Thwarted

The severe weather also disrupted the plans of climbers escorted by a American climbing firm to summit Cho Oyu, an 8,188-meter (26,864-foot) peak on the frontier between China and Nepal.

Visitor Growth in the Region

Karma valley was first visited by western travelers a hundred years ago. In modern times, with the growth of the Everest region in Tibet as a significant tourism destination, the area has brought in an growing number of travelers. More than 540,000 visitors traveled to the Everest region last year, marking a new record.

Area Still Off-Limits

The Everest region is still currently off-limits to the public, encompassing the Karma and Rongshar valleys, as well as Cho Oyu.

Wider Impact

The intense snowfall over the weekend also affected many of travelers in other parts of western China, such as Xinjiang, Qinghai, and Gansu. Unfortunately, at least one person succumbed, due to a mix of hypothermia and high-altitude illness.

Unusual Conditions

October is typically a busy season for the area, with usually sunny and pleasant weather, but one participant of an 18-person trekking group that returned safely to Qudang commented that the weather this year was “not normal.”