Rescue operations are under way on Mount Everest after a severe snowstorm trapped nearly 1,000 people in campsites on the eastern side of the mountain in Tibet, Chinese state media has reported. Hundreds of trekkers stranded by a blizzard near the eastern face were guided to safety on Sunday, as unusually heavy precipitation, including rain, pummelled the Himalayas.
As of Sunday, 350 people had reached the small township of Qudang, while contact had been made with the remaining 200-plus trekkers, according to China Central Television (CCTV). The visitors were in the remote Karma valley, which leads to the eastern Kangshung face of Everest, taking advantage of an eight-day National Day holiday in China.
Snowfall in the valley, which lies at an average elevation of 4,200 metres (13,779 feet), began on Friday evening and persisted throughout Saturday. “It was so wet and cold in the mountains, and hypothermia was a real risk,” said Chen Geshuang, part of an 18-strong trekking team that made it to Qudang. “The weather this year is not normal. The guide said he had never encountered such weather in October. And it happened all too suddenly.”
The remaining trekkers would arrive in Qudang in stages under the guidance of rescuers organised by the local government, CCTV reported. Hundreds of local villagers and rescue teams had been deployed to clear snow blocking access. The CCTV report did not specify if local guides and support staff had been accounted for, nor whether trekkers near the north face of Everest—also in Tibet—had been affected.
Chen’s party descended from the mountains on Sunday and was greeted by villagers after enduring an evening of heavy snowfall combined with thunder and lightning. “Back in the village we had a meal and were finally warm,” Chen said. Ticket sales and entry to the entire Everest scenic area were suspended from Saturday, according to notices from the local Tingri County Tourism Company.
To the south in Nepal, heavy rains triggered landslides and flash floods that have blocked roads, washed away bridges and killed at least 47 people since Friday. Thirty-five people died in separate landslides in the eastern Ilam district bordering India, while nine were reported missing after being swept away by flood waters and three others were killed in lightning strikes.
