Hundreds of Mount Everest hikers rescued from snowstorm, 10 remain

Hundreds of hikers and their guides were rescued from the lower slopes of the world’s tallest mountain and the surrounding area after a weekend of heavy snowfall that made swaths of Mount Everest impassable, Chinese state media reported.

Some 580 hikers had been rescued from the snowstorm by Tuesday, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported, in addition to over 300 local guides, yak handlers, and other workers assisting trekkers in their ascent up Mount Everest. At least 10 other trekkers were still making their way down the mountain with help from rescuers, it added.

Search and rescue teams, including some equipped with horses and drones, launched a days-long effort to get the hikers to safety, per state media, with villagers also assisting with oxen and horses.

Local outlets were reporting that the hikers were trapped partway up the mountain at an elevation of around 16,400 feet, mostly at tourist campsites. The summit of Mount Everest has an altitude of some 29,000 feet.

One of those trapped, 41-year-old Eric Wen, recalled trekking for 12 miles through mostly heavy snow on his descent. “Thankfully, some people ahead of us were breaking trail, leaving footprints we could follow – that made it a little easier,” he told Reuters. “Otherwise, it would’ve been impossible for us to make it out on our own.”

One part of Everest is in Nepal and the other part is in China’s Tibet Autonomous Region. Nepalese authorities told the Kathmandu Post that no climbers or tourists were trapped in the recent weather on the Nepal side.

A large number of Chinese tourists had flocked to the area – a designated scenic site – due to it being a holiday period.

The full ascent to Mount Everest’s peak can take around two months, including the time taken to acclimatize to the extreme altitude. The increasing popularity of the climb with tourists, leading to traffic jams on some of its paths, has pushed Nepal to move to restricting permits to more experienced hikers.

While over 6,000 hikers have successfully ascended Everest, hundreds have died on its slopes.

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Rudy Lu contributed to this report.