Nepali authorities said Sunday it was not possible to search for a missing British climber and his guide on Mount Everest because they fell on the Chinese-controlled side of the mountain.
Daniel Paul Paterson, 40, and 23-year-old local sherpa Pas Tenji were reported missing Tuesday after scaling the world’s highest peak, which lies on the border between China and Nepal.
“It is not possible to search for the missing climbers right now because the British (mountaineer) and his Sherpa fell from the bottom of Hillary step, which is at about 8,800 meters (26,964 feet) and toward the Kangshung Face in Tibet,” said Khim Lal Gautam, an official at Everest’s base camp who monitors climbers.
“It is going to be difficult to search for them because they have fallen on the Tibet side, which needs coordination.”
Four climbers have died so far this season, including two Mongolians, one Nepali and Kenyan Cheruiyot Kirui, 40, whose body was found near the summit last Thursday. His guide, Nawang Sherpa, is missing.
Controversy has swirled in recent years over the number of people crowding onto the world’s highest peak. The season starts in March and will end this week after hundreds of people have climbed it. Last year’s season saw 667 climbers make it to the top, and concerns arose about the waste generated by thousands of support staff needed at the base camp.
The son of Sir Edmund Hillary, the first climber to summit Mount Everest, along with guide Tenzing Norgay, told the Daily News in 2019 that his father would be “horrified at the whole thing” and “quite sad” to see the crush of people.
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That year, the Nepalese government tightened climbing rules and began requiring proof of high-altitude experience before issuing permits after 11 would-be summiters died on the mountain.
“The traffic of climbers heading to the summit was similar to that of the past two or three years,” said Tendi Sherpa, who has made it to the top 17 times — twice this month. Tendi said there were about 200 climbers up there, but “they were all organized and using their experiences and expertise.”
Not even COVID-19 stopped the climbers, as in 2021 when dozens of climbers were said to have the virus.
With News Wire Services
