This Season Is Marked As The Worst Season On Record
2019 has been one of the deadliest years on record for climbers hoping to reach the summit of Mt. Everest. In the last week alone, eleven people have died. What’s behind the spate of deaths? Experts blame overcrowding.
A video posted to Instagram this week by a user named Rohtash Khiler showed dozens of mountain climbers standing in line waiting to reach the summit of Mt. Everest, the highest mountain peak in the world. According to experts, waiting in line so long increases the risk of death from low oxygen and deadly altitude-related conditions, such as high-altitude pulmonary edema and cerebral edema, which causes fluid to enter the brain. Jeffrey Gertsch, a neuroscientist at the University of San Diego, told the Daily Beast that inexperienced climbers often ignore the warning signs of serious illness because they’re so eager to get to the top.
“They’ll do anything, even when it starts to defy logic, to tag the summit. Then they realize, wow, I don’t have what it takes to get back down. Lots of people who look to be clearly in need of help, a lot of people won’t help—because they’re too focused on the summit, or don’t have enough energy left, because they didn’t belong there anyway,” Gertsch said.
Many concerned citizens are calling on the country of Nepal to limit the number of climbers allowed on Mt. Everest in order to minimize the death toll from overcrowding. Gertsch said he found the videos of people waiting in line to reach the summit “horrifying.”
“As a climber, I’m offended, and as a physician, I’m horrified,” Dr. Jeffrey Gertsch said. “It’s just a cattle call in a really dangerous place.”
-
Deportation Deadline Sparks Humanitarian Worries in Pakistan Pakistan’s government announced on Monday that almost 200,000 Afghan nationals have voluntarily...
-
Lessons Learned Shape Taiwan’s Preparedness in a Changing World Taiwan’s military has embarked on a comprehensive initiative to strengthen...
-
White House Reveals Disturbing Executions and Threats in Conflict The White House has disclosed deeply concerning information regarding the...
-
Military Exercises Coincide with Treaty Developments Amid Global Concerns Russia recently executed a large-scale military exercise to rehearse its...
-
Company Addresses Auto-Translation Error Impacting Palestinian Users Meta, the parent company of Instagram, has issued a formal apology for...
-
China’s Ambitious Plans to Double Its Nuclear Warhead Stockpile Highlighted in Pentagon’s Annual Report The annual report released by...
-
Strengthening Partnerships and Providing Support in Challenging Times In a collaborative effort between the U.S. Congress and the White...
-
Humza Yousaf Extends Support and Sanctuary Amidst Gaza Conflict Humza Yousaf, the First Minister of Scotland, has extended a...
-
U.S. Stresses Peace and Humanitarian Aid in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict In an exclusive interview aired on Sunday, President Joe Biden...
-
Urgent Call for Aid as Communities Reel from Tremors The western province of Herat in Afghanistan has been rocked...
-
Calls for Peace Amid Diverse Perspectives on Ongoing Crisis In response to a series of recent demonstrations across Canada,...
-
Celebrity Voices in the Israel-Palestine Dialogue In the midst of the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict, a group of celebrities has...