In one of the most harrowing survival tales in mountaineering history, a climber left for dead on Mount Everest during a catastrophic storm made a miraculous return, described by witnesses as akin to 'the walking dead'. The 1996 disaster, which claimed eight lives, nearly added Texan pathologist Beck Weathers to its grim tally.
A Fateful Decision and a Deadly Wait
Beck Weathers, a 49-year-old father from Texas, was part of an expedition led by Rob Hall in May 1996. The group, which also included Doug Hansen, Andy Harris, Mike Groom, and journalist Jon Krakauer, aimed for the summit. However, Weathers was severely compromised from the start; eye surgery 18 months prior had left him nearly blind and without depth perception.
Realising his weakness, Weathers made the critical decision to wait for the returning summit party at high altitude. He was left standing in the same spot for almost ten hours as a ferocious blizzard, the deadliest in Everest's recorded history, engulfed the mountain. This prolonged exposure to extreme cold and hurricane-force winds would have consequences that lasted a lifetime.
Presumed Dead and a Grisly Resurrection
During the chaotic rescue efforts, guide Anatoli Boukreev located Weathers and declared him deceased. The following day, climbers Stuart Hutchison and three Sherpas found him again and corroborated the grim assessment. Back at camp, others whispered about the 'dead guy' in Scott Fischer's tent.
The camp began to pack up quietly at daybreak, believing all lost. Only Krakauer and guides Todd Burleson and Pete Athans remained. In an astonishing moment, Weathers yelled out from a tent. Jon Krakauer, checking tents before his descent, was stunned to find Weathers alive, his jaw 'dropped right down to the middle of his chest'. Against all odds, and contrary to conventional wisdom on hypothermia, Weathers had experienced a remarkable resurrection.
The Physical Cost and a Lifesaving Rescue
The survival came at an extreme physical price. In the months following his rescue, severe frostbite led to the loss of multiple body parts. Weathers recounted in his memoir, 'My Journey Home From Everest', sitting in a chair when a chunk of his right eyebrow, complete with hair, fell into his hand. Later, his big toe detached and skittered away as he walked.
His right hand was described by surgeon Mike Doyle as 'a set of dead puppets' with no blood supply above the wrist. Most remarkably, surgeons grew him a new nose. They crafted a 'vaguely nosey-looking object' from skin on his forehead, using cartilage from his ears and neck skin to shape it, leaving it to grow upside down on his brow before reconstruction.
His wife, Peaches, orchestrated an unprecedented rescue, coordinating with Hutchison, John Taske, and Sherpas to secure a helicopter at a never-before-achieved altitude to retrieve him. When officials called her to say he was 'not as dead as they thought', they cautiously avoided giving false hope.
A Life Profoundly Changed
Despite the trauma and disfigurement, Beck Weathers states he would not change his experience. The near-death episode on Everest catalysed a profound personal transformation. He wrote of finding peace for the first time, no longer seeking to define himself externally through achievements or possessions. 'For the first time in my life, I'm comfortable inside my own skin,' he reflected. His story was later dramatised in the major motion picture 'Everest', cementing his tale as one of the most incredible in alpine history.
