Kathmandu: Rescuers have abandoned their search for three missing Sherpas believed to have been killed along with 13 of their colleagues in an avalanche on Mount Everest, Friday. The accident has brought the focus to the risks Sherpas take to cater to the overcrowding number of climbers to Everest. The Nepalese government is now considering cancelling all expeditions to the summit for the rest of the year.
Helicopter searches and teams scouring the area on the ground on Friday and Saturday found no sign of the missing men, who rescuers believe were swept into crevasses or trapped under snow.
“We have called off the search operation. It not possible to find the three missing persons, dead or alive,†said Lakpa Sherpa, of the Himalayan Rescue Operation. He was speaking from basecamp, the starting point for Everest expeditions. The helicopters used in the search and to ferry bodies from the mountain have been called back to Kathmandu, an army spokesman said.
The government in Kathmandu rakes in money through climbers who pay $10,000 (£5,958) each. This year, 334 climbers from around the world were given permits which means the government would have to pay them back. “This is an unprecedented situation,” the tourism ministry spokesman Madhu Sudan Burlakoti told journalists. “We do not know what to do if they want their tax back. We will hold further discussions before deciding anything on this issue.”
Expedition leaders, politicians and leading Sherpas have agreed to lobby the government to improve compensation for guides. Sherpas feel they do not get a fair share of climbing royalties but are expected to take a disproportionate amount of the risk.
Mingma Sherpa of Seven Summits Treks warned that there would be no Sherpa involvement in mountaineering in the future if their social security concerns were ignored. “Sherpas are the backbone of Mount Everest expeditions but the government neglects them,” he told Himalayan Times. “We the Sherpas strongly urge the government to immediately act to support the families of deceased Sherpas. A permanent mechanism at government level is required.”
The high numbers of climbers has led to tensions on the slopes. Following an attack on three European climbers last year, the tourism ministry established a government post with liaison officers and security personnel to keep the peace.