Grisly find during rubbish cleanup on Mt Everest
Climbers sent to remove rubbish left behind by mountaineers on Mount Everest have made an even more horrific discovery.
As the snow melted, four bodies were retrieved during the cleanup designed to collect decades-old garbage from Mt Everest and its approach below the base camp.
Nine mountaineers died on the Nepali side of Everest in May while two perished on the Tibetan side, making it the deadliest climbing season since 2015.
Bodies exposed as Mt Everest snow melts
It’s estimated some 300 people have died trying to conquer the summit since 1953 and some are still buried under the snow during winter, but may become visible when the snow melts in summer.
Cleaning campaign coordinator Nim Dorjee Sherpa, head of the village where Mount Everest is located, told Reuters two bodies were collected from the treacherous Khumbu Icefall and two from the site at camp three.
"They were exposed from the snow when the sherpas picked up and brought them down," he said.
None of the four bodies have been identified and it was not known when they died.
The government said on Wednesday that the cleanup effort is part of a drive to improve the image of the world's highest mountain.
The Nepali climbers retrieved 11000 kilograms of litter from the 8850m mountain, an embarrassment for a country that earns valuable revenue from Everest expeditions..
Climbers returning from the summit say its slopes are littered with human excrement, used oxygen bottles, torn tents, ropes, broken ladders and cans left behind by climbers.
A cleanup team of 20 sherpa climbers collected 5000 kilograms of litter in April and May from different camps sites above the base camp and another 6000 kilograms from the areas below, said Dandu Raj Ghimire, director general of the Department of Tourism.
"Unfortunately, some garbage collected in bags at the South Col could not be brought down due to bad weather," Mr Ghimire said in a statement on Wednesday.
Everest was first conquered by New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay in 1953 and about 5000 people have since reached the summit.
On the Southeast Ridge route pioneered by Hillary and Tenzing, is located at some 8016 metres, and it is the site of the final camp from where climbers begin their summit attempts.
Climbers returning from Everest have talked of crowding and delays on the Nepali side just below the summit in the "death zone", so-called because at that altitude the lack of oxygen can be fatal.
However climbers and guides have blamed a host of factors for the deaths.
Mr Ghimire, of the Department of Tourism, said the deaths were not because of congestion but due to bad weather and short summit windows.
Nepal this year issued 381 permits to Everest, an important source of income for the cash-strapped nation.
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