Family mourns lost climber in Nepal
The family of Australian mountaineer Sue Fear have finally accpeted that she is dead.
A colleague of the Australian mountaineer Sue Fear says her family has accepted that she is dead.
Ms Fear fell into a crevasse while descending Mount Manaslu in the Himalayas on Tuesday.
Experts say there is no hope of finding her alive and there is not the technology to retrieve the body from the deep crevasse.
In 2003 Sue Fear reached the summit of Mt Everest.
Hope yet for missing Australian Climber
Earlier reports had stated that another Australian climber had died in the Himalayas in Nepal. As more news has filtered through there seems to be still some hope that the climber may have survived.
The family and friends of Australian mountaineer Sue Fear say they have not given up hope that she may have survived a fall into a crevasse on a mountain peak in Nepal.
An expedition team is searching for Ms Fear, who has reportedly died while descending from the world’s eighth highest mountain, Mount Manaslu, in Himalayan Nepal.
For more news on ABC News Online click here.
Meanwhile, the Australian climber who miraculously cheated death on Everest last week is gaining strength and is due in Kathmandu today.
Lincoln Hall, 50, spent a night in the open just below the 8,848 metre summit after he was left behind on Thursday suffering from acute altitude sickness after reaching the top of the world’s highest peak.
Mr Hall was being carried on a yak on Monday down from Everest base camp, and was expected to be brought to Nepal’s capital Tuesday.
Australia’s ambassador to Nepal left Kathmandu on Monday to meet Mr Hall and the rescue party near Nepal’s border with Tibet, an embassy official said.
Another Climbing Death in Nepal
News has just come through that an Australian woman climber has died while climbing in Nepal.
An Australian climber has died during an expedition in Nepal.
The Department of Foreign Affairs says it is aware of reports of a death of a 43-year-old Australian woman on Nepal’s Mt Manaslu.
The woman, from New South Wales, is understood to have died after falling into a crevasse after descending from the summit.
To read the news item on ABCNews Online click here.
More Deaths on Everest
In the news today is the story of two more deaths on Mt Everest. This time it was experienced Australian climber Lincoln Hall who died while descending from the summit of Mount Everest. Fellow climber Thomas Weber also died after turning back from an attempt to reach the summit.
This comes only a few days after the controversial death of a British climber, left to die by other climbers who allegedly made no rescue attempt. This group of climbers included double amputee, New Zealander Mark Inglis. Mark has received sharp criticism from Sir Edmund Hillary, the first to successfully climb to the top of the world.
To read the story on ABCNews Online click here.
Postscript: CORRECTION
Good news: more recent updates from Everest have announced that Lincoln Hall has, in fact, survived and is receiving medical attention.
To read about my trekking adventures in the Everest region last January, go to the Archives section on the right and scroll down to the January posts.
Tragedy on Mt Everest
Last week the world was admiring the feats of Mark Inglis of New Zealand, the first double amputee to reach the summit of Mt Everest in Nepal. It has now transpired that Mark was not quite the hero everyone thought he was. Sure, he is still the first double amputee to reach the top of the world. That in itself was a truly remarkable and gutsy effort, and I still admire him for his courage and determination.
Where were the True Heroes?
On his way to the summit Mark passed English climber David Sharp some 300 metres below the top. David was in serious trouble, ill-prepared, poorly equipped and sheltering under a rock with no oxygen and almost dead. Mark – along with some 40 other climbers that day – ignored the plight of the dying climber. Sure – they were all courageous, gutsy and had achieved a remarkable feat in reaching the top of Everest. My gripe is this – did they ALL lack basic human compassion for the dying man. No-one, it seems, made any effort to rescue the dying climber.
Demanding Terrain
What all climbers and trekkers in the Himalayas quickly realise is that this is some of the most demanding terrain in the world. Add the extreme altitude and you have a potentially lethal cocktail. Any weaknesses, or lack of application or preparation are quickly revealed – often with swift and deadly consequences. When I was trekking in this region in January (see the Archives section of this blog) our trekking group saw the body of a Sherpa being carried down past our lodge. Even the locals are not immune to the problems of high altitude.
To read more about this tragic event read the article on ABC News Online by clicking here.