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posted by martyb on Thursday June 20 2019, @06:27AM   Printer-friendly
from the how-many-people-would-climb-it-if-it-was-safe-and-easy? dept.

Everest summits smash records amid deadly bottlenecks

Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:

A record 885 people climbed Everest in May this year, figures showed Tuesday, capping a deadly traffic-clogged season that also saw 11 climbers die on the world's highest mountain.

The number smashed last year's record of 807 summits despite a short weather window that resulted in fatal bottlenecks on the peak.

[...]A traffic jam forced teams to wait for hours in freezing temperatures to reach Everest's 8,848-metre (29,029-foot) summit and then descend, increasing the risk of frostbite, altitude sickness and exhaustion from depleted oxygen levels.

Experts said too many of the new wave of mountaineer tourists were ill-prepared and inexperienced. Others have called for a cut in the number of climbing permits, or tougher standards for guides.

[...]A government team re-measuring the height of Everest also reached the top.

 
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