Kathmandu: Climate change is losing snow and ice on the sacred slopes of Mount Everest, exposing more of the bodies of hundreds of climbers who died chasing their dream of climbing the world’s highest mountain.
This year, among those who climbed the 8,849-meter (29,032-foot) Himalayan mountain, who risked their own lives to bring several dead bodies to the ground, did not attempt to reach the summit.
Five unnamed frozen bodies, including only skeletal remains, have been found as part of Nepal’s Everest clean-up campaign and the Lhotse and Nuptse clean-up campaign.
This is a serious, difficult and dangerous problem.
Rescuers spent hours breaking the ice with axes, and the team sometimes used boiling water to loosen the frozen handle.
“Due to the effects of global warming (bodies and dust), it is more visible as the snow cover becomes thinner,” said Nepal Army Major Aditya Karki, who led a team of 12 military personnel and 18 climbers.
More than 300 people have died on the mountain since the expedition began in the 1920s, eight this season alone.
A lot of people stay. Some are hidden by snow or swallowed by deep gullies.
Others, still in colorful climbing gear, it is crucial to climb.
Nicknames include “Green Shoes” and “Sleeping Beauty”.
“There is a psychological impact,” Karki told AFP.
“When people climb the mountain, they believe that they are entering a divine space, but when they see a dead body on the road, it can have a negative effect.”
Many are in the “death zone,” where thin air and low oxygen levels increase the risk of illness.
Climbers must have insurance, but rescue or recovery missions are dangerous.
A body encased in ice took climbers 11 hours free.
The team had to use hot water to replace it, judging it with a wick.
“It’s very difficult,” said Tshiring Jangbu Sherpa, who led the search expedition.
“Getting the body out is one part, going down is another challenge.”
Sherpa said some bodies appeared as they did at the time of death, fully clothed, complete with crampons and clothing.
The other one seems to be untouched, only missing his glove.
Finding dead bodies on adventures is a controversial topic for the climbing community.
Thousands of dollars, up to eight lifeguards are needed for each crew.
Their body weight can reach up to 100 kilograms (220 pounds), and their high altitude greatly affects a person’s ability to carry heavy loads.
But Karki said a rescue operation was necessary.
“We have to bring back as many as we can.” “If we keep abandoning them, our mountains will become graves.”
The corpses are often covered with bags and then put on a plastic sled to drag.
Sherpa said that carrying the crew to the 8,516-meter summit of Lhotse, the fourth highest mountain in the world, was one of the most difficult challenges he had ever faced.
“This body is frozen with hands and feet,” he said.
“We have to take him to the Third Camp like this, only then we can put a sled that can drag.”
Rakesh Gurung of Nepal’s tourism department said the two bodies had been tentatively identified and authorities were awaiting “detailed tests” for final confirmation.
The recovered bodies are now in the capital, Kathmandu, where the unidentified people will eventually be cremated.
Despite the restoration work, the mountain still holds its secrets.
The body of British mountaineer George Mallory, who disappeared during the 1924 summit attempt, was only found in 1999.
His climbing partner, Andrew Irwin, has never been found, nor has his camera, which can provide evidence of a successful summit that will rewrite the history of mountaineering, ever been found.
The cleanup campaign, which has a budget of more than $600,000, employed 171 Nepali guides and porters to bring back 11 tons of trash.
Fluorescent tents, discarded climbing equipment, empty gas cans and even human exhaust litter the way to the summit.
“The mountains have given us many opportunities as climbers,” said Sherpa.
“I feel that we have to give them back, remove the dirt and bodies to clean the mountain.”
Today, expeditions are under pressure to remove the dust they created, but the dust of history remains.
“This year’s dirt can be brought back by climbers,” said Karki. “But who will bring the old one?”
