A US mountaineer has died on Everest, marking the fourth fatality on the peak this climbing season. Jonathan Sugarman, 69, passed away while on an acclimatisation rotation at Camp 2, at an altitude of 6,400 metres.
His expedition organiser, Pasang Tshering Sherpa of Beyul Adventure, said that Sugarman had been feeling unwell, and that attempts were underway to bring his body back. Nepal has issued 466 permits to foreign climbers, with more than 900 people expected to summit Everest this season, which runs until early June.
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The country is home to eight of the world’s 10 highest peaks and sees hundreds of adventurers arrive each spring. On average, around five climbers die every year on Everest, though in 2019, this figure reached 11, with overcrowding cited as a key factor.
It is thought that climate change may also be increasing the risks faced by climbers, with reports of widening crevasses, previously snowy slopes with running water, and more glacial lake formation.
