During the ascent of Everest in May 2019, 10 people died – more than usually die in a year
To reach the summit, people have to stand in a long queue at an altitude of over eight thousand meters, where there is not enough oxygen to breathe. As "Russkaya Germaniya" notes, in normal situations climbers do not stay there for long.
Experienced climbers believe that the queue on Everest formed due to clear weather, since the mountain cannot be conquered when it is cloudy. This year, Nepal opened the spring climbing season on May 14 and issued 381 permits to ascend. Such a document costs about 10 thousand US dollars. However, the permit is only a small part of the expenses for those wishing to conquer the summit.
The bodies of the dead, as a rule, remain right on Everest. Evacuating them from there is extremely difficult. Those who climb the mountain see frozen and stiff corpses of their predecessors along the way.
Of course, 10 deaths per season is not a record for Everest. But never before have people died because of queues! The largest mass death of climbers conquering the highest peak in the world occurred in 2015. Then, due to a powerful earthquake, an avalanche descended on Chomolungma, covering the camps. 19 people died. A year earlier – in 2014 – also due to an avalanche, 16 people died. Before that, the deadliest was considered 1996, when 15 people died, eight of whom died on the night of May 11.
Another 25-30 years ago, it was not uncommon for years when every fourth person who conquered Everest died. Today, thanks to the established infrastructure of extreme tourism, about 4% of climbers do not return from the top of the world.