|
KATMANDU, Nepal – Days after four people died amid a traffic jam of climbersscrambling to conquer Mount Everest, Nepal officials said a similarrush up the world's tallest peak will begin soon, and there'slittle they can do to control it. About 200 climbers are expected to attempt to scale the 8,850-meter(29,035-foot) mountain between Friday and Sunday, Nepalimountaineering official Gyanendra Shrestha said. Some have been ata staging camp for days, waiting for a window of good weatherduring this worse-than-usual climbing season. A similar crowd of 208 climbers headed to the summit last week, andfour died Saturday in one of the deadliest days ever on themountain. Ha Wenyi of China, Eberhard Schaaf of Germany, Nepal-born CanadianShriya Shah and South Korean Song Won-bin died on their descentsfrom the summit, apparently from exhaustion and altitude sickness. Shrestha also said a Nepalese Sherpa guide who had been reportedmissing reached the base camp safely on Monday. The guide wasseparated from his group and did not have communications equipment,Shrestha said Tuesday. The deaths have raised concerns about overcrowding above thehighest camp on the mountain. The area is nicknamed the "deathzone" because of the steep icy slope, treacherous conditions andlow oxygen level. Describing a "traffic jam" of climbers Saturday, Shrestha saidclimbers were heading to the summit at 2:30 p.m., even though 11a.m. is the latest start time recommended. That meant climbers werestaying too long at high altitudes and exhausting their oxygensupplies because they didn't anticipate having to wait. Now, with a similarly large number of climbers expected to head upthe same trail under similar conditions, Nepalese authoritiesacknowledged safety concerns but said they can't turn any of themaway. "The climbers have received the permits to climb within specificdates. We cannot say who gets to get to the summit on which datesbecause of the unpredictable weather. When weather clears up theyall want to benefit," said Nepal's Tourism Ministry spokesman, BalKrishna Ghimire. Apa, a Nepalese Sherpa guide who has scaled Everest a record 21times, said climbers are eager to reach the summit, so when theweather clears up they take their chances. "The window of good weather is so short that if the climbers missit then there is a good chance they will not be able to get anotherchance, so they don't want to wait and take their chances," saidApa, who uses only one name. e said the traffic jam of climbers going up and down the same icytrail makes it hazardous, especially with climbers alreadyexhausted from having climbed all night from the last camp, at26,246 feet. "And having to wait for extra hours and the delays only makes thesituation worse," Apa said. Ghimire said it is up to the climbers and their teams to assess theconditions and safety. "We have officials at the base camp, but beyond that it is mostlyup to the climbers," Ghimire said. He said that eventually, the government plans to set up a seasonaloffice at the base camp equipped with doctors, weather experts andsecurity personnel. Ghimire said they also have plans to give eachclimber a tracking device. More than 3,000 people have climbed Everest since Edmund Hillaryand Tenzing Norgay became the first to do so in 1953. Some 225climbers have died attempting it. The deadliest day was May 10, 1996, when eight people were killed.The main reason was said to be that climbers who started theirascent late in the day were caught in a snowstorm in the afternoonand lost their way. The climbing season normally runs from late March to the first weekin June, but this year the season's first clear conditions were onFriday and Saturday. A windstorm hit the higher altitudes bySaturday afternoon. We are high quality suppliers, our products such as Powder Coating Conveyor Line Manufacturer , China Paint Coating Line for oversee buyer. To know more, please visits Spray Coating Line.
Related Articles -
Powder Coating Conveyor Line Manufacturer, China Paint Coating Line,
|
