Two Indian mountaineers died while descending from Mount Everest after successfully scaling the world’s highest peak, an official in Nepal said on Friday.
The climbers were identified as Arun Tiwari and Sandeep Are.
According to Rishi Bhandari, secretary general of the Expedition Operators Association of Nepal, Are summited Everest on Wednesday, while Tiwari reached the 8,848.86-metre peak on Thursday at around 5.30 pm.
Bhandari said climbing guides made extensive efforts to rescue the mountaineers during the descent but were unable to save them.
“The guides worked really hard, but they could not save them,” he informed.
Officials said Are died on Thursday, while the exact time and circumstances surrounding Tiwari’s death were not immediately clear.
Also read: Nepal’s Kami Rita Sherpa climbs Mt Everest for 32nd time
The deaths occurred during the ongoing spring climbing season on Everest, which has witnessed heavy mountaineering activity this year.
On Wednesday, a record 274 climbers successfully summited Mount Everest in a single day, marking the highest number of ascents ever recorded within 24 hours. Three Indians, including Are, were among those who reached the summit that day.
The other Indian climbers who summited on Wednesday were Tulasi Reddi Palpunoori and Ajay Pal Singh Dhaliwal.
On Thursday, another Indian mountaineer, Lakshmikanta Mandal, also successfully climbed Everest.
Mount Everest expeditions remain physically demanding and dangerous due to extreme weather, low oxygen levels and hazardous terrain, particularly in the “death zone” above 8,000 metres where oxygen availability is critically low.
Nepal has witnessed a surge in Everest expeditions in recent years, with hundreds of climbers attempting the summit during narrow weather windows in the spring climbing season.
Further details regarding the recovery operations and official cause of death are awaited.
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