EVEREST GUIDE HILLARY DAWA SHERPA FOUND AFTER SIX DAYS SEPARATED FROM CLIENTS

A cleaning team working on Mount Everest's upper slopes discovered Hillary Dawa Sherpa at the foot of the Khumbu Icefall last Thursday, six days after he became separated from his clients during a descent. He was wearing a bright blue summit suit and had been without supplemental oxygen throughout the period. His family had begun funeral rites, having presumed him dead. Rescuers airlifted him to a hospital in Kathmandu; he was reported to be frostbitten but able to sit upright and speak.

Hillary Dawa Sherpa had been hired by Himalayan Traverse Adventure as a camp cook, yet records show he was leading clients up the 8,849-metre peak at the time of the incident. Himalayan Traverse Adventure states its handling of the incident followed correct procedures and that poor weather hampered rescue efforts. According to reports, his survival was sustained by eating chocolate and chewing ice. The discovery drew attention from the international mountaineering community.

The incident has prompted questions about the duties placed on Sherpa guides and the standards applied by high-altitude tourism operators on Everest. Some observers have questioned whether Himalayan Traverse Adventure took sufficient steps to protect its guides. The case has directed attention towards the risks faced by Sherpa workers employed by operators in the high-altitude climbing industry. Hillary Dawa Sherpa has since been discharged from intensive care.