2014 Mount Everest ice avalanche

Avalanche on Mount Everest 2014 Mount Everest ice avalanche KhumbuIcefall.jpg 250px The Khumbu Icefall in 2005. The ice avalanche came from a serac fall from an ice bulge on Mount Everest's western shoulder (centre left), above the icefall. yes 2014 04 18 06:45 local time (01:00 UTC) Khumbu Icefall, Mount Everest 27 59 32 N 86 52 38 E region:NP_type:event inline,title Avalanche 16 9 On 18 April 2014, seracs on the western spur of Mount Everest failed, resulting in an ice avalanche that killed sixteen climbing Sherpas in the Khumbu Icefall. This was the same icefall where the 1970 Mount Everest disaster had taken place. Thirteen bodies were recovered within two days, while the remaining three were never recovered due to the great danger in attempting such an expedition. Many Sherpas were angered by what they saw as the Nepalese government's meager offer of compensation to victims' families, and threatened a protest or strike. On 22 April, the Sherpas announced they would not work on Everest for the remainder of 2014 as a mark of respect for the victims. Background thumb|Khumbu Icefall, Everest West Shoulder and Mount Everest as seen from Kala Patthar Guide employment on Mount Everest During the two month long climbing season on Mount Everest, 350 to 450 people, mostly men from the Nepalese Sherpa ethnic group, are hired to assist mostly foreign climbers to reach the summit. Although the term Sherpa normally refers to the ethnic group, many people refer to all of the mountaineering guides working on Everest (who may be, for example, West Indian) as "Sherpas", regardless of ethnicity. A Sherpa who works as a porter on Mount Everest, specialised in high-altitude work including rope fixing, typically earns about US$125/day per climb. Most come from climbing families, are raised on stories of wealth earned from expeditions, and have relatively few other economic opportunities. Working as a guide for foreign climbers can bring in up to $5,000 a year; by contrast, Nepal's average annual salary is about $700. In the years prior to the disaster, foreigners began bringing their own guides, causing tension with locals. Eight people, including one of the most experienced Sherpa guides, died on Mount Everest in 2013. Concerns over Khumbu Icefall route thumb|500px|Khumbu Glacier + Khumbu Icefall + Mount Everest The presence of numerous unstable blocks of ice (called seracs) in and above the Khumbu Icefall encourages climbers to try to pass through as quickly as possible, usually in the very early morning before temperatures rise and loosen the ice. In the spring of 2012 Russell Brice, of the guiding company Himex, called off guided ascents run by his company due to safety concerns. He was worried about the stability of a 300 m ft wide ice cliff, or ice bulge, on Mount Everest's western shoulder that could endanger the route through the Khumbu Icefall, if it collapsed. "When I see around 50 people moving underneath the cliff at one time," he commented, "it scares me." However, Brice and Himex returned to the south side of Everest for the 2014 climbing season.http://himalayanexperience.com/expeditions/everest-south-side/newsletters/everest-2014#sthash.bUEqELkC.dpbs Himalayan Experience » Expeditions » » Everest South Side » Newsletters » Everest 2014 himalayanexperience.com 2014-09-17 https://web.archive.org/web/20141020000336/http://himalayanexperience.com/expeditions/everest-south-side/newsletters/everest-2014#sthash.bUEqELkC.dpbs 2014-10-20 dead Mountaineer Alan Arnette reported that this ice bulge had been a known hazard for years and had discharged ice into the Khumbu Icefall almost every season. He added that, "In 2012 it narrowly missed many climbers."Arnette Alan Everest 2014: Everest Nepal Officially Closed: The Big Picture http://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2014/04/24/everest-2014-offically-closed-big-picture/#comment-32876 alanarnette.com 24 April 2014 According to writer and mountaineer Jon Krakauer, the 2014 ice avalanche was triggered when a block of ice "the size of a Beverly Hills mansion" broke off from the bulge. Conditions change regularly with the glacier's shifting ice, so climbing guides must find and maintain a new route through the icefall each season. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/18/mount-everest-avalanche-climbers-dead The Guardian London Mount Everest avalanche leaves at least 12 Nepalese climbers dead Jason Burke Ishwar Rauniyar 18 April 2014 18 April 2014 Ice avalanche At approximately 06:45 local time (01:00 UTC, 18 April 2014), an ice avalanche occurred on the southern side of Mount Everest, at an elevation of approximately 5,800 m ft. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-27075638 Everest avalanche kills at least 12 Sherpa guides BBC News 18 April 2014 18 April 2014 Twenty-five men, mostly Sherpas, were buried in the avalanche.Krakauer Jon Death and Anger on Everest https://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2014/04/everest-sherpas-death-and-anger.html 22 April 2014 The New Yorker 21 April 2014 Of the twenty-five men hit by the falling ice, sixteen were killed, all of them Nepalis working for guided climbing teams. The group was fixing ropes and preparing the South Col route for fee-paying climbers during the upcoming climbing season. The accident zone, locally known as "the Golden Gate" or "Popcorn Field", lies within the Khumbu Icefall. The ice avalanche came from a large serac breaking off on the slopes of Mount Everest's western shoulder. Despite most reporting, this was not an avalanche in the usual sense of the word as there was little snow involved and the large blocks of serac ice behave much more like a rockfall.Deadliest Day: Sherpas Bear Everest's Risks Ellen Barry Ellen Barry (journalist) Graham Bowlet 18 April 2014 The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/19/world/asia/fatal-avalanche-on-mount-everest.html 18 April 2014 subscription https://web.archive.org/web/20160410003841/https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/19/world/asia/fatal-avalanche-on-mount-everest.html 2016-04-10 liveArnette Alan Everest 2014: Avalanche Near Camp 1-Sherpa Deaths:Update 7 http://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2014/04/17/everest-2014-avalanche-near-camp-1-sherpa-deaths/ alanarnette.com 20 April 2014 The serac was estimated to have been 34.5 meters (113 ft) thick and to have had a mass of 14,300 tonnes (31.5 million pounds).Measuring Everest's Monster Avalanche Kelley McMillan 15 October 2014 National Geographic News http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/10/141015-everest-sherpa-avalanche-icefall-tragedy-graphic-mountaineering/ https://web.archive.org/web/20141018015451/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/10/141015-everest-sherpa-avalanche-icefall-tragedy-graphic-mountaineering dead October 18, 2014 4 January 2015 Though there have been calls for construction of defensive structures, they are impossible on the scale necessary.Burke Jason Nepalese official calls for avalanche barriers on Everest in wake of disaster https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/26/nepal-mountaineering-official-calls-for-avalanche-barriers-in-wake-of-disaster 26 April 2014 The Guardian 26 April 2014 thumb|500px|center|This labeled photo-diagram shows the location of the fatal ice avalanche on the 2014 route, and the revised 2015 route through the Khumbu. Victims + 2014VictimsMingma Nuru SherpaDorji SherpaAng Tshiri SherpaNima SherpaPhurba Ongyal SherpaLakpa Tenjing SherpaChhiring Ongchu SherpaDorjee KhatriThen Dorjee SherpaPhur Temba SherpaPasang Karma SherpaAsman TamangTenzing Chottar SherpaAnkaji SherpaPem Tenji SherpaAsh Bahadur Gurung Sixteen people died in the disaster. Thirteen bodies were recovered within 48 hours, when search and rescue operations were called off due to "too much risk". Three victims are still buried in roughly 80 to 100 m ft of snow and ice. Nine other guides were also injured, including three who required intensive-care hospitalisation. http://www.ekantipur.com/2014/04/20/fullnews/everest-avalanche-search-mission-called-off-citing-too-much-risk/388536.html Everest avalanche: Search mission called off citing 'too much risk' Kantipur Publications 20 April 2014 20 April 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20150402174940/http://www.ekantipur.com/2014/04/20/fullnews/everest-avalanche-search-mission-called-off-citing-too-much-risk/388536.html 2 April 2015 dead Four fatalities were Sherpas from Nepal's Solukhumbu District. Five were working for Discovery Channel, preparing for an upcoming special in which Joby Ogwyn was planning to attempt a BASE jump from the mountain.http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/world/twelve-dead-in-mount-everest-avalanche/story-fni0xs63-1226889176212 Twelve Dead in Mount Everest Avalanche Daily Telegraph Australia 18 April 2014 No foreigners were killed. According to mountaineer Tim Rippel, the victims were moving slowly and carrying large "loads of equipment, tents, stoves, oxygen and so on up to stock camps" when the avalanche occurred. The Sherpas had started out in early morning but were delayed by poor climbing conditions. The second unit crew of disaster movie Everest (2015) were filming nearby, but suffered no injuries or fatalities; Sherpas involved with the film's production gave assistance after the avalanche.Fleming Mike Jr. 'Everest' Movie Crew OK After Tragic Avalanche https://deadline.com/2014/04/everest-movie-crew-okay-after-tragic-avalanche-716875/ 20 April 2014 Deadline Hollywood 18 April 2014 In total, the search and rescue team included nine Sherpas and three foreigners. The 2014 disaster is the second-deadliest disaster in Everest's history, only superseded by avalanches that struck the southern side of the mountain the following year, on 25 April 2015, triggered by a magnitude 7.8 earthquake in Nepal. Reactions Rippel reported "everyone is shaken here at base camp". Some of the climbers immediately packed up their belongings and left. In addition to mandatory insurance policies paying US$10,000 to guides' families, the Nepalese government announced compensation of Nepali Rs. 40,000 ($400) each as immediate relief to the victims' next of kin.12+ Trekkers killed Avalanche hits Mt. Everest Base Camp in Nepal http://news.biharprabha.com/2014/04/6-climbers-killed-9-missing-as-avalanche-hits-everest-base-camp/ IANS news.biharprabha.com 18 April 2014 This government offering, which only covers funeral costs, angered Sherpas and was dismissed by the Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA). The NMA announced they would stop work in seven days' time if compensation of US$10,000 were not paid to families of the dead, injured and missing. They further demanded a memorial to the dead, the doubling of insurance coverage to $20,000 and government payment of medical bills.http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2014/04/nepal-guides-demand-avalanche-compensation-201442164210813808.html Nepal guides demand avalanche compensation – Central & South Asia Al Jazeera English 21 April 2014 According to unverified reports, 350 guides voted to suspend operations on Everest. Other reports said the guides agreed to unspecified "strong protests". On 21 April, eight of the dead were ceremoniously driven through Kathmandu and then cremated in a Buddhist religious ceremony.As Nepali sherpa families cremate Everest victims, anger grows Gopal Sherma Reuters 21 April 2014 http://in.reuters.com/article/us-nepal-everest-idINBREA3H06L20140421 21 April 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20160307055227/http://in.reuters.com/article/us-nepal-everest-idINBREA3H06L20140421 2016-03-07 On 22 April, the Sherpas announced they would not work on Everest for the rest of 2014 out of respect for the victims.Sherpas abandon Everest climbing season after deadly avalanche https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2014/apr/22/nepal-everest-talks-sherpa-strike-avalanche 22 April 2014 The Guardian 22 April 2014 Tulsi Gurung said: "We had a long meeting this afternoon and we decided to stop our climbing this year to honour our fallen brothers. All Sherpas are united in this." The fate of 334 climbing permits sold at $10,000 each is uncertain.Douglas Ed Everest Sherpas divided over call to halt climbs after fatal avalanche https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/20/everest-sherpas-halt-climbs-avalanche 21 April 2014 The Guardian 20 April 2014 By 24 April, almost all expeditions had decided to abandon their climbing plans; the 600 mountaineers who were at Base Camp before the avalanche was down to 40 or 50. On 23 April, the Nepalese government announced it would give an additional 500,000 Nepali Rs. (approx. US$5,100) to the families of the dead climbers.Govt to provide Rs 500,000 each to bereaved families http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=73385 24 April 2014 Republica 23 April 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140424162638/http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=73385 24 April 2014 dead Although these funds started to be paid in December 2014, it was reported in January 2015 that the bereaved Sherpa families were further angered because the money could only be obtained if they presented documentation in Kathmandu, which is impossible for many of those who live in the Khumbu region.Pert Charlotte Sherpa families angry and fearful eight months on from Everest disaster https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/04/-sp-sherpa-families-everest-disaster-guides-avalanche-compensation 5 January 2015 The Guardian 4 January 2015 Discovery cancelled Ogwyn's planned BASE jump shortly after the ice avalanche struck, and announced it would broadcast a documentary about the tragedy.Everest jump called off after avalanche https://www.theguardian.com/global/2014/apr/21/everest-jump-avalanche-joby-ogwyn-nepal-sherpas 21 April 2014 The Guardian 21 April 2014 Entitled Everest Avalanche Tragedy, the 90-minute programme was shown on 4 May. The company also said it would make a donation to the American Himalayan Foundation Sherpa Family Fund, a charity supporting the families of those who died in the disaster.Discovery to air 'Everest Avalanche Tragedy' doc in May Los Angeles Times 24 April 2014 https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/showtracker/la-et-st-discovery-to-air-everest-avalanche-tragedy-doc-in-may-20140424,0,6393906.story Patrick Kevin Day 24 April 2014 Following the accident, the NMA president Ang Tsering Sherpa proposed installing avalanche-prevention barriers similar to those found above European ski resorts. He said: "We should ... adopt some precautionary measure – learning from [how] mountains [are managed] in developed countries where they adopt measures to avoid avalanches by putting some kind of wood or some concrete so that it helps make it safe." It is very doubtful however if any defensive structures are feasible for events of this size. The 2015 documentary Sherpa explores reactions to the avalanche after filmmakers were on location when it occurred.https://deadline.com/2015/11/sherpa-documentary-director-jennifer-peedom-everest-1201637412/ 'Sherpa' Doc Director Jennifer Peedom On Filming Through Everest Tragedy & Giving The Sherpas A Voice Joe Utichi 24 November 2015 25 March 2016 Deadline Effects and aftermath +Years in Review SummaryYearSummitersReference(s)2012547 http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/06/125-everest-maxed-out/jenkins-text https://web.archive.org/web/20130607230858/http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/06/125-everest-maxed-out/jenkins-text dead June 7, 2013 Everest Maxed Out ngm.nationalgeographic.com 29 May 20162013658http://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2013/06/03/everest-2013-season-recap/ Everest 2013: Season Recap: Summits, Records and Fights alanarnette.com 29 May 20162014106http://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2014/06/09/everest-2014-season-summary-nepal-tragedy/ Everest 2014: Season Summary - A Nepal Tragedy alanarnette.com 29 May 201620150https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/01/12/for-the-first-time-in-42-years-nobody-made-it-to-the-top-of-mount-everest-last-year/ The Washington Post - For the first time in four decades, nobody made it to the top of Mount Everest last year Peter Holley 12 January 2016 washingtonpost.com 29 May 20162016641 http://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2016/12/30/everest-by-the-numbers-2017-edition/ Everest by the Numbers: 2018 Edition 18 December 20172017648 https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/comment/should-we-stop-climbing-everest/ Is it time to ban Western travellers - and their egos - from Mount Everest? Travel writer Simon Parker The Telegraph2018801 Post-disaster ascents in 2014 The first post-avalanche ascent of Mount Everest via the South Col route was on 23 May 2014, by Chinese businesswoman Wang Jing, together with five sherpas.https://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/article/140805-mount-everest-sherpa-mountain-climbing-jing-wang-avalanche/ https://web.archive.org/web/20210225165537/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/article/140805-mount-everest-sherpa-mountain-climbing-jing-wang-avalanche dead February 25, 2021 Woman Whose Post-Avalanche Everest Ascent Sparked Outrage Defends Her Feat 7 August 2014Nelson Dean First climber to scale Everest this year accused of cheating https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/nepal/10856686/First-climber-to-scale-Everest-this-year-accused-of-cheating.html 2 June 2014 Telegraph 26 May 2014 Her ascent sparked controversy, as she bypassed the Khumbu Icefall by helicopter, which took her to 21000 ft flip; this decision was made because the 2014 ropes and ladders had been removed. She made her ascent without new rope lines, and beyond the usual 14:00 cut-off time, and made her descent in the dark. Tamding Sherpa, the leader of the team that Wang was planning to use before her original expedition was called off as a result of the disaster, stated that he considered her ascent to be "cheating". Changes in 2015 As a result of the dangers of the normal route up the left side of the icefall, the Nepali authorities announced in February 2015 that a new route, up the centre of the icefall, would be followed instead.Burke Jason Everest climbers to follow new route after last year's disaster https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/feb/18/everest-climbers-to-follow-new-route-after-last-years-disaster 19 February 2015 The Guardian 19 February 2015 According to the director of the Nepali government’s Department of Tourism, Tulasi Prasad Gautam, "In response to the last year’s avalanche we are trying to make Everest climbing a little safer by avoiding the old route." In addition, the insurance for each Sherpa in 2015 was raised from $11,000 to $15,000.Cadwalladr Carole Everest: is it right to go back to the top? https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/12/mount-everest-sherpa-disaster-one-year-on 12 April 2015 The Observer 12 April 2015 See also List of deaths on eight-thousanders List of people who died climbing Mount Everest 1970 Mount Everest disaster Sherpa (film) References External links EverestAvalancheTragedy.com is Discovery's site on the disaster and donations to victims of it. Category:2014 natural disasters 2014 Category:Mountaineering disasters Category:April 2014 in Asia Category:Avalanches in Nepal Category:2010s avalanches Category:2014 disasters in Nepal