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Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,823
Registered: ‎03-21-2010

Re: No wonder 10 people have already died trying to summit Everest


@jannabelle1 wrote:

So once they get to the top, what route do they take back down? Seriously....

 

@jannabelle1  .... yes, I’d like to know that also .... how the heck do they get back down???

 


 

Respected Contributor
Posts: 3,144
Registered: ‎09-14-2010

Re: No wonder 10 people have already died trying to summit Everest

I saw that article.

You know, I think these people are crazy and stupid,

 

Not adrenaline junkies, not thrill seekers, just crazy people with

a stupid goal of reaching the top.

 

Do these people just not have anything better to do or what? 

 

It’s an unforgiving mountain people.

Nothing more.

 

 

 

-Texas Hill Country-
Honored Contributor
Posts: 9,139
Registered: ‎04-16-2010

Re: No wonder 10 people have already died trying to summit Everest

There is an interesting article (came across on my phone in the news feed) discussing the OTHER issues with this nightmare on Everest:

 

*too many permits being sold by Nepal

*MASSIVE corruption within the Nepal government so they're selling these permits without any consideration of dangers to human life

*the vast majority of these groups on part of tours that operate on the streets of Nepal and are not regulated so anyone can call themselves a tour guide with no experience of climbing.

* equipment sold to these groups (and individuals who are inexperienced) include oxygen tanks that are barely full, water bottles that are not full; clothing that is useless in these conditions and so on.

 

And individual who was interviewed is a medical doctor who has made the climb many times. He was shocked and disgusted by what he saw. He had to step over dead bodies that were NOT covered as went up and came down the summit. He saw people who were not fit in any way as part of these tours knowing they would physically be unable to climb. He stated that he spends approximately $65,000-$70,000 to climb Everest regarding mainly equipment as well as travel and permit costs. There were people who had spent $1000 TOTAL; he stated there was no way their equipment was going to work in that environment. He also stated that as these people climbed and then realized they couldn't go any further, it clogged everything up as they had to turn around and come back down.

 

Others were interviewed and overall, the article showed the truly ugly side of human nature: greed, lack of empathy and pure selfishness. There are those who blame Nepal's government; the government blames the people who are climbing as to not being smart enough to know the risks.

 

Eye opening article, have to say.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 17,517
Registered: ‎06-17-2015

Re: No wonder 10 people have already died trying to summit Everest

They take the risks and the "why" isn't' important.

 

Some folks are into mountain climbing and some folks are into watching the Kardashians while noshing on a bag of chips.

 

While climbing Mr. Everest is not on my list, I understand the pull to do this.  I don't think they are crazy.  We all have things we hope to do; and if this is one of those things to do for them, go for it.

"" Compassion is a verb."-Thich Nhat Hanh
Honored Contributor
Posts: 9,139
Registered: ‎04-16-2010

Re: No wonder 10 people have already died trying to summit Everest

@Cakers3 I agree 100% with you that no one is crazy for wanting to do what they want to do. My issue is that IF you're going to do something, make sure you've researched it, prepared for it in EVERY way possible and be RESPONSIBLE.

 

The article I mentioned showed very clearly that the majority did NOT do this when the pictures and interviews were done. 

 

You don't just jump out of plane with a parachute you bought at a surplus store because you want to sky-dive. There's a right way and wrong way to do it. It would appear that there are many doing Everest the wrong way and that's putting everyone involved at risk.

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,504
Registered: ‎05-22-2014

Re: No wonder 10 people have already died trying to summit Everest

[ Edited ]

@SahmIam, You are so right.  Even a high official of the government of Nepal admitted he estimated that only 50% of the Everest climbers have the experience to climb this mountain.  The Sherpa guides have a treacherous job as it is.  They make numerous trips up and down the mountain for every expedition, carrying ropes, ladders, tents, heating apparatus for tents, oxygen tanks, and now even dining tables for tents at all the base camps.  It is the only way for male Sherpa tribe members to earn money.

Many of them die.  And their risk is greatly increased by having to guide climbers who have an obvious lack of experience.

 

Someone posted a picture of Hillary at the summit.  No fault of the poster at all, but little attention is given to Tenzing Norgay, the Sherpa who climbed with him and made this all possible.  In fact, some still wonder which of the two men was the first to stand at the top of the world’s tallest mountain.

 

There are some questioning the ethics of this all.  Yes, you have the right to risk your life for the thrill of this.  But in doing so, you are risking the lives of many Sherpa guides.  For those Sherpa, this is the only way they can feed their families.  So many have died.  In fact, I believe it was a son of a noted Sherpa, now living in the U.S., who said Everest has turned into a “cash cow” and compared the long lines of climbers to a version of “Disneyworld.”

 

I wonder how Kathmandu has fared after the massive earthquake a few years ago that destroyed most of the city and killed so many.

You can probably tell that I don’t read fiction.  The history of all this, learning about the culture, the mentality, etc., has obviously enthralled me for a long time.

 

I might add that I began by reading “Into Thin Air,” but learned that some dispute some facts in this book.  It vilianized a Russian guide

for the tragedy.  He was so adept that he did not need oxygen.  As good as he was, he was killed in an avalanche climbing another mountain.  Sadly so, as there are always risks of sudden storms, an avalanche, or edema in those climbing.

 

Thank you for your enlightening comments.  It doesn’t take much to get me going!!!

 

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,821
Registered: ‎02-16-2018

Re: No wonder 10 people have already died trying to summit Everest


@lovesrecess wrote:
You’d better hope no one falls down while in that Line! I had always imagine the summit to be isolated and empty...is there no place you can go to be alone anymore?

@lovesrecess  Your own peaceful backyard, balcony or home.😊

Respected Contributor
Posts: 4,232
Registered: ‎07-11-2010

Re: No wonder 10 people have already died trying to summit Everest

[ Edited ]

This world is full of all kinds of strange, foolish people, that line proves it!  But then there is the foolish Nepal Govt that allows too many permits to unqualified people....garbage and debris on Mt. Everest that harms nature and needs cleaning at high expense....danger, destruction and garbage will continue as long as Nepal allows too many people going up/down the mountain.  They have a problem and they will have to fix it, meanwhile people will continue to perish as well as Mt. Everest's nature.

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,821
Registered: ‎02-16-2018

Re: No wonder 10 people have already died trying to summit Everest

[ Edited ]

I think it’s great if people want to make such a climb, but it’s ignorant to do it in these overcrowded conditions. Anyone who’s done any research into doing a major climb knows this. People who jump into situations without doing their research put their lives completely in others hands. It’s just plain stupid.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 14,752
Registered: ‎03-15-2014

Re: No wonder 10 people have already died trying to summit Everest

The 11th person died today - a 62-year-old attorney from Colorado.  He had reached the summit and was descending, apparently suffering cardiac arrest.  With his conquest of Everest, he attained a life goal - climbing the highest peak on each of the seven continents.

 

From Deadspin:

 

"Boulder attorney, Christopher Kulish, added to one of the deadliest climbing seasons in Mt. Everest history, becoming the 11th person to die on the mountain in 10 days. A news release from his brother said Kulish died early Monday morning on his way back down the mountain after reaching the summit earlier in the weekend.

 

Christopher’s brother, Mark, said the 62-year-old climber arrived at the mountain’s base camp in Nepal seven weeks before his ascent to get acclimated to the climate. He died of cardiac arrest at the camp just below the summit.

 

Kulish’s death comes during a record-breaking climbing season on the mountain where a total of 381 permits—which cost $11,000 a pop—were handed out, according to the Associated Press. For reference, 346 permits were given out last year. The death also comes days after a 55-year-old American died at the summit—though his death was a result of altitude sickness, the more common cause of death among the 11 who have died so far

 

This crowded season was made evident by an anxiety-inducing photo shared online that showed a line of climbers near the summit.

 

According to mountain guides, the crowding is a big reason behind all of the deaths and serious injuries that climbers have experienced this year.

 

Sherpa guides on the Nepali side of the mountain have complained that the traffic jam at the last stretch of the climb, called “the death zone,” has become the most serious problem for climbers in this spring season.

 

“I have climbed Everest so many times, but this spring’s traffic jam was the worst,” said Tshering Jangbu Sherpa, a guide who summited Everest on May 22. “Many climbers who moved to the summit without extra supplement oxygen bottles suffered the most. They suffered because of the traffic jam, not because of wind and coldness.”

 

The death toll and carnage that have resulted from the overcrowding was described by an Arizona doctor as “like a zoo.” Ed Dohring, the doctor in question, told the New York Times that he had to step around a woman who had just died when he reached the top of Everest and had to wait hours to share the flat part of the summit—which is approximately the size of two ping pong tables—with about 15 to 20 people to get a photo."