Climbers and guides are gathering at base camp on the south side as mount everest remains the target despite an unstable ice block in the Khumbu Icefall and rising travel and permit costs.
Around 464 climbers and an equal number of Nepali climbing guides are at the base camp, which sits at about 5,300 meters altitude, preparing for the season's weather window to attempt the nearly 8,850 meter summit.
The Khumbu Icefall stalled route setting for more than two weeks because of a massive, unstable serac that hung over the trail, and the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee said the feature has multiple cracks and may collapse at any time.
Icefall doctors opened the route only after the delay and warned operators and climbers to exercise extreme caution, as the new trail passes below the hanging ice. Lukas Furtenbach, a mountain guide on the mountain with 40 international climbers, 11 guides and 90 Sherpas, said anyone not concerned is inexperienced and called the serac a real, objective hazard.
Teams are reducing loads, limiting exposure time and timing movements carefully through the Icefall while relying on experienced Sherpa and guides for risk assessment. Asian climbers have increased this season even as climbers from Western countries have decreased, and operators note that China has closed its route this year, leaving attempts from Nepal's south side.
Climber Death And Safety Concerns
A climber died after suspected high altitude sickness during an ascent, authorities said, after his condition worsened above Camp I. The District Police Office identified him as Bijay Ghimire Bishwakarma of Solududhakunda Municipality 7, and Police Information Officer Inspector Bikash Rai said Ghimire fell seriously ill and died while being evacuated toward base camp.
Ghimire was climbing with Trek Nepal Company and had previously summited Mount Everest and worked as a climbing guide. His body was airlifted by helicopter to Lukla and preparations were under way to bring it to Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital for post mortem, according to the police.
Expedition operators and veteran Sherpas stressed caution, saying early morning travel through the Icefall may be safer because frozen ice is less likely to fall, while warmer afternoons increase melting and collapse risk. The season also carries broader concerns about fast glacier melting, a reality highlighted by UN Secretary General António Guterres when he visited a Nepali mountain and warned about glacier loss.
