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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Apr 18, 2014 - 01:35pm PT
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Very tragic event, my heart goes out to the sherpas and their families. The sherpas have a dangerous and arduous job fixing ropes, carrying loads for and even providing meals for rich clients who, in most cases, do not possess the skills or experience to be in such an area on their own. You shouldn't be on an 8000 meter peak if you are not prepared for self rescue. Hundreds of clients waiting for "a team of experts" to refix lines for their retreat speaks volumes about the current state of affairs on Everest.
Who can blame the Sherpas? They earn a good living in one of the poorest nations on earth catering to clients coming from the richest nations.
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aspendougy
Trad climber
Los Angeles, CA
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Apr 18, 2014 - 01:59pm PT
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Here are some results from a 45 year U.S. Study of avalanche deaths. Seems there will always be some fatalities, unfortunately. This must be very hard for the families.
"A total of 440 victims were killed in 324 fatal avalanches, of which 87.7% were fully buried, 4.7% were partially buried, and 7.6% were not buried. The average age was 27.6 +/- 10.6 years, and 87.3% were men. Victims who died included climbers (25.5%), backcountry skiers (22.7%), out-of-bounds skiers (10.0%), snowmobilers (6.8%), in-bounds skiers (5.2%), residents (4.5%), ski patrollers (3.6%), workers (3.6%), and motorists (3.0%). Over the 45-year study period there appear to be decreases in the deaths of in-bounds skiers, highway workers, and motorists. Increasing fatalities were observed among out-of-bounds skiers, snowmobilers, ski patrollers, and backcountry skiers. Most deaths occurred in Colorado (33.0%), Washington (13.2%), and Alaska (12.0%).
CONCLUSIONS:
Avalanche fatalities have increased over the last 45 years. Climbers, backcountry skiers, out-of-bounds skiers, and more recently snowmobilers constitute the majority of the victims. The decrease in deaths among groups that benefit from avalanche control programs supports the benefit of avalanche prevention strategies. Further study is needed to assess the impact of avalanche safety education for individuals who travel in remote and uncontrolled terrain."
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Apr 18, 2014 - 02:02pm PT
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Sherpas get sacrificed to the mountain to satisfy the "drive" and bottomless egos of privileged white stiffs going for glory.
Really sad. These people have nothing.
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fluffy
Trad climber
Colorado
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Apr 18, 2014 - 02:18pm PT
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So sad
This is that one serac that always seems to either scare the crap out of everyone or release
Time to bring a howitzer to BC?
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Jan
Mountain climber
Colorado, Nepal & Okinawa
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Apr 18, 2014 - 02:46pm PT
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Bruce-
There are no foreign climbers involved. All were dead, injured, and missing are Nepalese.
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Scott Patterson
Mountain climber
Craig
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Apr 18, 2014 - 03:03pm PT
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To bad they have to risk their lives to climb a mountain for people who cant climb it themselves.
No, they don’t have to. They choose to. The climbing Sherpa are the heroes of Nepal and many Nepalese look up to them and admire them (the lowland porters are a completely different story, they are low down on the totem pole). They are a proud people and climbing Sherpa are viewed in the same manner as Westerners view star athletes. No one in Nepal is revered and respected more than the climbing Sherpa. Most climbing Sherpa aren’t there because they have no other choice, but because that is what they aspire to (as mentioned, this usually isn’t the case with most porters).
Many might be surprised that at least many (I’m sure not all do) of the Sherpa actually enjoy climbing. Many enjoy the wealth (especially by Nepal standards) and fame that the profession brings.
Many of them know their s***. They are very avalanche savvy and really know how to climb. That said, their profession is extremely dangerous.
For the most part death, regardless of cause is not viewed in the same way we view it and overall (this is a generalization), they are prone to taking more risk (I’m not speaking of mountain climbing; you should see the bus drivers et al). Families still are devastated by deaths.
The first demand is that the fixing and maintenance in the Icefall should be the the job of the foreigners. They want to climb it so bad, go ahead and earn it.
How about letting them make their own decision on that part? That will never fly with the local population. The first time I went to the Nepal Himalaya, I wanted to carry my own pack. After being confronted by curious locals near the end of the trip that wanted to know why I didn’t want a porter after spending the money on a plane ticket to get to Nepal, to be honest I felt a little guilty. There were plenty of people that wanted to carry my pack and I didn’t let them.
Since then, I have hired porters in Nepal, if anything to help out local economies.
That said though, one has a responsibility to do everything you can to make sure your porters and/or Sherpa are safe. On my last trip one of the porters was afraid to tell me that he was sick, but once I found out about it, I immediately changed our plans and we scrapped our plans of crossing over a high pass and climbing another peak. Instead I did everything I could to help him recover (he really didn’t like me doing this) and we went slowly down the mountain. I still wanted to climb the peak and cross the pass, but I pretended that I didn’t want to and that it was me who needed to descend.
None one should treat any porter or Sherpa poorly or be focused more on a summit than on the safety of the porters or Sherpa. Personal ambition should never come before the safety of the team or individual, including the porters and Sherpa. Any climber or trekker should do what they can to minimize risk to the porters and Sherpa. many Westerners don’t respect the Sherpa enough. If you read many expedition reports, the Sherpa names are not even mentioned. This should not be the case.
How sad it is that the bodies of the brave Sherpa are still in the mountains. My heart goes out to them. I like to climb, but not at the level these guys can.
On the other hand, not letting them have employment, if that is what they truly want to is not the answer either. Much more should be done to help the Sherpa. One reason for Sherpa deaths in general is that too many people put their personal ambitions over the safety of the Sherpa.
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labrat
Trad climber
Auburn, CA
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Apr 18, 2014 - 03:07pm PT
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Nice Post Scott. Agree ^^^^^^
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Tvash
climber
Seattle
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Apr 18, 2014 - 03:08pm PT
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Terrible tragedy.
I'm not sure Everest's paying clients can be blamed for this act of nature, however. It's helpful to remember that a high altitude sherpa's job is a comparatively well paying one that carries with it a lot of prestige and benefits - particularly when compared to the other local options available. It's easy to fall into the outsider's trap of assuming this is an exploitative relationship - the Sherpas themselves can best answer that concern, however. The Sherpas we hired for a six week climbing/trekking trip in the Khumbu clearly enjoyed the experience, were happy to make such comparatively good money, and felt fortunate to have the work.
I would characterize the climbing/trekking logistics industry the region as more symbiotic than exploitative. That is not to say that this and accidents shouldn't spur reform - better training, insurance, avi forecasting (still lotsa black magic when it comes to serac fall), etc, but I'd wager many sherpas in the region appreciate the tourism that supports them.
Furthermore, many clients on high altitude expeditions are experienced and well prepared. They sign on with a guide service not to be dragged up the mountain (any guide service will tell you up front that you must climb the peak yourself), but to handle the daunting logistics such an effort entails.
In the end, such accidents represent a simple numbers game - there are many more people on the mountain these days, but the mountain's hazards remain the same. The scale of such accidents in recent years has increased accordingly, despite improvements in safety.
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Apr 18, 2014 - 03:31pm PT
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George Lowe gave a slide show the other evening,
and he spoke of 'taking care' of the people like the
Sherpas, those that make climbers life easier on
some of the high peaks.
My condolences to the families that lost members. . .
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Tvash
climber
Seattle
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Apr 18, 2014 - 03:50pm PT
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It's not unheard of in the wake of such a tragedy for well meaning folks half a world a way to weigh in with various remedies based on their own experience, but it's probably best to let the Sherpas, the guiding services who employ them, and the Nepalese government work out whatever reforms they can to minimize the chance of something like this happening again.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Apr 18, 2014 - 04:20pm PT
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If one views the situation as a market then it should fix itself if it
is allowed to. Clearly the Sherpas are under-valuing their services given
that the demand continues to climb, pardon the pun. They need to increase
their fees until demand falls then they can adjust accordingly. I also don't
get why the Sherpas don't have their own guide service. If they did
then they could really put the screws to the infidel guide services and it
would sort itself out tout de suite. Of course, the Nepalese gubmint isn't
going to idly stand by and let something sensible happen for the benefit of
the people, especially if it jeopardizes the climbing fees.
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Jan
Mountain climber
Colorado, Nepal & Okinawa
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Apr 18, 2014 - 05:18pm PT
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There is no easy or safe work for a Nepalese.The alternative to working on Everest would be to work in the Middle East as many Nepalese do. They are treated really badly there and dozens of lowland Nepalese have died of heat stroke there in the past few years. For a Sherpa the mountains are the best alternative.
That said, increasing the amount of mandatory life insurance even more (the Nepalese government raised it for everyone last year) would help.
Whether canon could be used to bring down seracs and avalanches in a safer manner is debatable. I'm sure they don't work as well at 20,000 feet as at 10,000, but Spider's suggestion of running clinics on avalanche control and protection as Conrad has done with climbing technique, would seem worth pursuing.
Beyond that, the Himalaya are getting more dangerous every year because of global warming.More avalanches, more GLOFs (more glacier lakes that burst through their moraines and under the ice glacier lakes that suddenly drain).
To be born Nepalese is to have a difficult karma and yet they remain resolutely cheerful in spite of it all. I think there's a lesson there.
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zBrown
Ice climber
Brujo de la Playa
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Apr 18, 2014 - 05:26pm PT
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Chile's long tradition of mining developed during the 20th century and has made the country the world's top producer of copper.[14] An average of 34 people per year since 2000 have died in mining accidents in Chile, with a high of 43 in 2008, according to figures from the state regulatory agency National Geology and Mining Service Spanish: Servicio Nacional de Geología y Minería de Chile abbreviated to SERNAGEOMIN
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HighTraverse
Trad climber
Bay Area
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Apr 18, 2014 - 05:27pm PT
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^^^^^ on Jan's post
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Jan
Mountain climber
Colorado, Nepal & Okinawa
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Apr 18, 2014 - 05:56pm PT
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The Nepalese government has just announced that it will pay the families of each Sherpa killed an additional $415.
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Crazy Bat
Sport climber
Birmingham, AL & Seweanee, TN
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Apr 18, 2014 - 06:43pm PT
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OK, this climber groupie thinks the sherpa are proud of the jobs they do. I think the fight last year shows that they take their jobs seriously.
Just going to 7000 feet turns this lowlander into a marshmallow. I can't imagine hauling a cannon to base camp, much less any higher.
BTW a famous cave photographer, Bob Biddix, was on the mountain below the group that was hit. His is back at Base Camp now.
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BASE104
Social climber
An Oil Field
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Apr 18, 2014 - 06:45pm PT
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$415.00?
The Sherpas need to unionize and charge a cool million bucks for setting the fixed ropes and the camps. 300 climbers paying 50K each is 15 million bucks. Everest is big business, and they should get a chunk of the profits considering the risks that they take on a daily basis.
They should also get a super fat life insurance policy paid for by the guide operators and the clients.
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labrat
Trad climber
Auburn, CA
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Apr 18, 2014 - 06:46pm PT
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Nepal’s ministry of tourism and civil aviation announced a new fee of $11,000 per climber in January of this year....
EDIT Where does all that money go?
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aspendougy
Trad climber
Los Angeles, CA
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Apr 18, 2014 - 07:11pm PT
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Can Everest be done without Sherpas?
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Scott Patterson
Mountain climber
Craig
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Apr 18, 2014 - 07:14pm PT
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Nepal’s ministry of tourism and civil aviation announced a new fee of $11,000 per climber in January of this year....
EDIT Where does all that money go?
Probably into the general fund. The per capita income in Nepal is only $615 per year and Nepal relies heavily on foreign aid.
$11,000 per year per climber helps (which is why Nepal won't be motivated to limit the amount of climbers), but doesn't make the nation rich. China, United States, Japan, and Europe donate a lot of money to Nepal.
Can Everest be done without Sherpas?
Yes, it has been done without Sherpa several times.
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