Mount Everest rescue: Race against time to save 200 hikers after snowstorm

More than 200 hikers are stranded on Mount Everest after a blizzard swept across the world’s highest peak with a rescue effort now underway to get them down.

The storm battered the Himalayan region and sparked landslides and floods on the Nepalese side of the mountain, which resulted in the deaths of 40 people. Chinese state media has reported 350 people on Everest had been evacuated with the 200 remaining to have been contacted.

The operation to save the people is currently underway with stranded hikers being seen preparing instant noodles as the rescue continues. Hikers have observed abnormal weather^[1] this year.

October is typically peak hiking season due to the skies being more clear and conditions being more forgiving. But this year the snowstorm halted hikers’ plans to climb up Everest.

Eric Wen, who was in a group of 18 hikers, told Reuters that they had decided to move away from their campsite due to continuous snowfall. He added: “It was raining and snowing every day, and we did not see Everest at all.”

Two men and a woman fell ill with hypothermia, despite wearing proper clothing for the expedition, it has been reported. He added, snow^[4] needed to be cleared from the site every 10 minutes.

“More than 10 of us were in the large tent and hardly slept,” Eric added. Heavy snow fell at Oga Campsite in the Karma Valley as hikers underwent a 12-day trek to reach the summit.

The Karma Valley is a lesser-know trail to the Everest base camp, it typically requires a decent level of mountaineering experience as well as people trekking it to be physically fit. The route requires guides and its use is heavily regulated, like other routes up to the summit.

Mount Everest is hugely popular with people with the area receiving some 540,2000 visitors in 2024. The majority of visitors do not aim to reach the summit, with 1,000 people estimated to have done so last year.