Rescuers have successfully guided all remaining trekkers near the east face of Mount Everest in Tibet to safety on Tuesday, including hundreds of local guides and yak herders, officials said, marking the conclusion of one of the region’s largest-ever search-and-rescue operations.
The stranded hikers were trapped over the weekend in deep snow in the remote Karma Valley after an unusually powerful blizzard dumped heavy snowfall across the area. Snow fell throughout Saturday at the valley, which sits at an average altitude of 4,200 meters (13,800 feet). By Sunday, rescuers had already evacuated about 350 hikers.
According to officials, the remaining 200 or so trekkers were safely evacuated by Tuesday, bringing the total number of evacuees to 580 hikers, along with more than 300 guides, yak herders, and support staff, Xinhua news agency reported.
The blizzard also disrupted climbing expeditions on nearby peaks, including Cho Oyu, an 8,188-meter (26,864-foot) mountain on the China-Nepal border, where U.S.-based Madison Mountaineering had planned summits.
Karma Valley, first explored by Western travelers a century ago, has grown increasingly popular in recent years as tourism in the Everest region of Tibet has expanded. Last year, the region welcomed a record 540,000 tourists.
Authorities have temporarily closed the Everest region to visitors, including Karma and Rongshar valleys and Cho Oyu, to ensure safety. The heavy snowfall over the weekend also affected hikers across other parts of western China, including Xinjiang, Qinghai, and Gansu. Tragically, at least one person died due to a combination of hypothermia and acute mountain sickness.
