970x125
It’s a nightmare at 16,000 feet.
Nearly 1,000 adventurers were trapped on Mount Everest after a massive blizzard swept in this weekend — as rescue crews struggled to reach the stranded campsite on Sunday.
Weekend storms trapped hikers on the mountain’s eastern face in Tibet beginning Friday, with heavy snows collapsing tents and leaving many suffering from hypothermia, according to reports.
Tibet’s Blue Sky Rescue team has managed to bring as many as 350 trapped tourists to safety, but hundreds of others remain trapped by the snow as rescue efforts continue, the BBC reported.
Meanwhile, the Tingri County Tourism Company has suspended ticket sales to the dangerous yet popular 29,000-foot Himalayan peak, the world’s tallest.
Although it has evolved into a popular climbing challenge for tourists from around the world, more than 300 have died on the mountain — particularly the area above 26,000 feet known as “the dead zone.”
The mountain’s unpredictable weather patterns and violent storms pose constant dangers for climbers.
Last year, a pair of climbers went missing and were believed dead after a ridge collapsed on Everest.
Earlier this year, Nepal issued new guidelines that will allow fewer thrill seekers access to the mountain, following years of crowded climbing crews that have increased the risk.
The weekend storm has also triggered landslides and flash floods in Nepal, where at least 47 people have been killed, and in India, where at least nine people were reported swept away by floodwaters.
With Post wires
