Monday, April 27, 2015

Climbers on Mount Everest Still Stranded After Massive Nepal Earthquake Triggered Deadly Avalanche

Carolyn Williams
Published: April 27,2015





 
The scene on Mount Everest was somber on Monday, as several climbers fought to hold hope for rescue two days after a deadly 7.8 magnitude earthquake rocked Nepal, triggering an avalanche that left them stranded on the peak and its base camps.
"We have been up here at Camp 2 hanging tough, but we are running low on food and fuel, and we have to get down," Garrett Madison of Madison Mountaineering told ABC News.
Rescue efforts were slow at best, as larger aircraft were unable to reach the rescue sites due to the high altitude, leaving crews with the option of smaller helicopters that could carry only two to three people per trip, the Guardian reported.
(MORE: How You Can Help | Americans Killed in the Earthquake)
Romanian mountaineer Alex Gavan described the scene via Twitter.

  Alex Gavan @AlexGAVAN
Stranded climbers evacuation from camp1&2 continues. 3 helis fly non stop. Only 2 people per shuttle due to high altitude. Weather good.

At least 140 climbers have been rescued, in what is now being hailed as the largest rescue effort in the history of mountaineering, the Guardian reported.
Yet for those still stranded, the dangers they face are harrowing, Madison told the Today show, saying the earthquake and avalanche completely decimated the pathway to Camp 1, and continuous aftershocks were creating more hazards.
(MORE: Avalanche Kills Climbers)
Even though the death and destruction emotionally and physically wounded so many, some climbers are still willing to risk the danger and are contemplating completing their trek up the world's highest mountain.
One of those brave souls is Nick Cienski, senior director of innovation for Under Armour, who told Reuters, “We are still sorting through a lot of emotions; 24 hours ago we were wrapping people’s body parts in bags. So on the one hand the reality of that ... and on the second hand, we are climbers and this is sort of what we do. And so, does it make sense to continue?”
At least 18 people were killed, including four Americans, when the terrifying avalanche crushed a base camp, leaving a scene of death and destruction amidst the cold snow, a scene that will not be forgotten in years to come.
MORE: Devastating Nepal Earthquake April 25-27, 2015

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