Chinese, Indian climbers die during separate Everest expeditions

The climbers died in separate incidents and the details were not available

A Chinese climber died en route to the summit of Mount Everest on Thursday while a 59-year-old Indian woman was evacuated from base camp suffering an unspecified illness and died on her way to hospital, a government official and hiking companies said.

Bigyan Koirala, an official at the Department of Tourism, said the climbers died in separate incidents. Details were not available.

Lakpa Sherpa, a senior official of the 8K Expeditions company, said the Chinese national died in the so-called “death zone” of Everest above 8,000 metres (26,246 feet) during a push for the 8,849-metre summit.

“We have only received the information about the death but details are yet to come,” Lakpa told Reuters.

Suzanne Leopoldina Jesus, from the Indian state of Maharashtra, was taken ill at the base camp and died after being evacuated to Lukla, the gateway to Mount Everest, Tendi Sherpa of the Glacier Himalaya hiking company which organised her expedition, said.

“Her body has already been flown to a hospital in Kathmandu,” he told Reuters.

Nepal, home to eight of the world’s 14 highest peaks, has issued 478 climbing permits for Everest during the current season ending this month.

Eight climbers, including the Chinese and Indian nationals, have died on Mount Everest during the current season which started in March.

Everest has been climbed more than 11,000 times since it was first scaled in 1953 and at least 320 climbers have died on the mountain.

A Nepali sherpa climbed Everest for a record 27th time on Wednesday when a British mountaineer made his 17th ascent, the most by a foreigner.