Although Cyclone Montha has been expected for days, it has caught hundreds of trekkers and climbers in Nepal unaware. Several groups have needed rescue, and one climber lost his life on Monday when the bad weather prevented a timely rescue.
The cyclone is expected to peak tomorrow. Everyone in Nepal is advised to keep up to date with forecasts and government alerts and to avoid areas prone to avalanches, rockslides, and flash floods.
Travel disruptions, including closed roads and cancelled flights, have also occurred.
Chopper crash in the Khumbu
Low visibility caused a helicopter crash yesterday in Lobuche, on the trekking route to Everest Base Camp. Luckily, the pilot escaped uninjured, but the helicopter was a wreck. The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal has banned further helicopter flights until the weather improves. This means that trekkers in snowed-in areas may find that their planned airlift is not an option.
Dead on Himlung
This week, Chin Tark Chan, 49, of Australia, lost his life on 7,126m Himlung, one of the easier 7,000’ers. Chan fell ill shortly before reaching the summit on Monday, October 27, and collapsed at around 6,800m. Outfitter 8K Expeditions called for an emergency airlift. However, the insurance company, Global Rescue, insisted that the sick climber had to be taken down to Camp 3 (6,400m). His location at 6,800m was above the “maximum operating altitude set by Nepal Aviation regulations, creating unacceptable risk to the pilot, the climber, and the rescue team,” the company noted.
A release Global Rescue shared with The Tourism Times describes the subsequent events:
While we were coordinating a helicopter rescue at Camp 3 (20,9967 feet/6,400 meters), the expedition operator independently launched a helicopter for a highly risky, hover attempt, which failed due to adverse weather conditions. The injured climber was then moved to Camp 3 as we had advised. Unfortunately, hours had been lost due to the failed hover attempt, and persistent snowfall across Himlung Himal prevented further helicopter launches that day.
Bad weather grounded the helicopters for the following two days, then yesterday, further helicopter flights were banned until the storm passed.
“Tragically, before a safe weather window presented, the client died below Camp 3 at approximately 6,500m,” said Global Rescue.
3D image of Himlung, with the climbing route and the camps, courtesy of 8K Expeditions.
Lakpa Sherpa, head of 8K Expeditions, explained to ExplorersWeb that they tried to arrange another helicopter, independently of Global Rescue, but it was also grounded due to bad weather.
“We also deployed a rescue team on foot who eventually reached the climber,” he added. “They successfully brought him down from Camp 3, but sadly, while descending further the next day, he passed away.”
Lakpa Sherpa insists they will try to bring the body down once the weather improves.
Himlung, in the Manaslu region, has become a highly popular peak in Nepal. It offers a straightforward climb but its height of 7,126m makes it a great preparation for climbers wanting to experience high altitude before tackling an 8,000m peak.
Rescues near Annapurna
Seventy-two tourists, including 17 foreigners, were stranded due to heavy snowfall at the Annapurna Base Camp earlier today, according to The Himalayan Times. Authorities cleared snow at some points along the Maurice Herzog route leading to Annapurna’s north side Base Camp.
Earlier this week, local authorities closed the trail to that Base Camp, and it will remain closed at least until Friday.
Stranded tourists near Dhaulagiri
Three British women and 12 Nepali trekking staff have been stranded for the past two days in the remote Marpha Valley, also known as Hidden Valley, in the Dhaulagiri range. The outfitting company, Sacred Himalaya Tours and Treks, asked for a helicopter rescue, offering to bear the cost of the operation, but they ran into the same problem as others: All helicopters are grounded.
The group could not be contacted today, Everest Chronicle reports. Local authorities have deployed a ground rescue team, and they expect to reach the place “soon.” We have enough supplies to last for two more days,” company spokesperson Binay Lama told Everest Chronicle.
Trekkers on snow-covered trains in Nepal this week. photo: Everest Chronicle
Many more rescues have been reported in other areas of Nepal. At least 1,500 trekkers, including foreigners, were rescued on Wednesday from Tilicho Lake (4,919m) in Manang. In addition, some 150 trekkers were rescued from Sandu village in the Manaslu area.
Climbers on Ama Dablam are currently waiting out the storm in Base Camp or down the valley. Marek Holecek and Radoslav Groh of Czechia, who plan to open a new route on the south face of Cho Oyu, retreated to Namche Bazaar and applied to extend their climbing permit until Christmas.
No storm here. Marek Holecek, far left, and Radoslav Groh (lying down) relax with friends. Photo: Holecek/Groh
Preventable problems?
“Currently, there is weather chaos in the mountains of Nepal,” Roland Hunter of The Mountain Company wrote on Facebook yesterday.
A climber, trekker, and expedition outfitter for decades, Hunter says that there was plenty of warning that bad weather was approaching, yet some rescued climbers were crossing high passes on Tuesday. He wonders why the Nepal Tourist Board and local authorities didn’t act sooner to prevent visitors from being in the wrong place at the wrong time, such as Tilicho Lake, Annapurna Base Camp, or the Thorong La.
Roland Hunter on the summit of Makalu in 2009. Photo: Hunter’s Makalu climbing report on YouTube
“The authorities in Nepal need to get their act together and implement an effective Early Warning System, and thorough investigations need to be carried out after deaths, like the [guided] South Korean who died in the storm on Mera Peak in early October,” said Hunter. The South Korean climber’s death was preventable, he believes.
Check the forecasts
Weather forecast for Annapurna at 5,500m for the next 4 days, by Mountainforecast.com
