Nearly 900 climbers, guides and other staff stranded on the Chinese side of Mount Everest after a weekend snowstorm have been evacuated. Government media gave this information late on Tuesday night.
Officials said rescue workers evacuated all remaining trekkers near the eastern face of Everest in Tibet, including hundreds of local guides and yak herders. This marked the end of one of the largest search and rescue operations in the region. Hundreds of climbers were trapped in deep snow in the Karma Valley over the weekend, following heavy snowfall caused by an unusually powerful blizzard in the region.
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A severe storm had hit the area on Saturday night, blocking access to sites where climbers were staying in tents at an altitude of more than 4,900 metres. A total of 580 mountaineers (hikers) and more than 300 guides, yak herders and other staff were trapped.
State media quoted local authorities as saying that about 350 climbers had descended by Monday afternoon and the rest by Tuesday. Some climbers were reportedly suffering from hypothermia (dangerously low body temperature) and were provided medical aid, the official Xinhua news agency reported. The scenic area of Mount Everest has been temporarily closed.
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The Everest region, which also includes the Karma and Rongshar valleys, and Cho Oyu, is temporarily closed to the public, Xinhua reported. Heavy snowfall over the weekend also affected hundreds of climbers in other parts of western China, including Xinjiang, Qinghai and Gansu. At least one person died due to hypothermia and acute mountain sickness.
October is a busy season for the region, where the weather is usually clear and pleasant, but Chen Geshuang, one of 18 members of a trekking group who returned to Qiudang, said the weather this year was “not normal.”