2023 has been the deadliest year on Mount Everest
The Himalayan Database has updated its spring 2023 statistics and the number of fatalities on Everest is higher than initially thought.
The Everest figures have confirmed that the figure of 17 deaths was not the whole tally in 2023. The final figure, confirmed by Nepal authorities, adds one more, making it 18 fatalities on the world’s highest mountain peak.
Preliminary data at the end of the Everest season showed 17 people dead on the mountain, however not all the information was in.
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This now makes 2023 one of the worst years on record for deaths on Everest, matched only by the events of 2014 and 2015.
2015 EARTHQUAKE
In 2014, 17 died, including 14 in a serac collapse (ice falls) near Camp 1, most of whom were local sherpas killed in an avalanche. On average, between five and 10 people die on Everest every year, but recent years have seen a spike.
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Until now, 2015 had the most deaths. That year, a major earthquake triggered an avalanche on Pumori that partly buried Everest Base Camp. A total of 18 people died that spring.
The final count shows a 2023 total of 479 Everest permits and 656 summits. Of these, 393 were Nepalese climbers, mostly porters and guides who didn’t require permits.
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Only three people summited without supplementary oxygen.
WHAT DOES IT COST TO CLIMB MOUNT EVEREST?
Prices are expected to increase sharply in 2025, from the current $11,000 (R210 000) per person to $15,000 (R280 000.)
Nepal’s Ministry of Tourism said it would help to discourage some climbers to prevent crowding.
However, the growing success of luxury expeditions ranging from $100,000 to $300,000 suggests that an increase of $4,000 to the base permit cost won’t make much of a difference.
CLIMATE CHANGE
Experts say variable weather caused by climate change is being blamed as one of the main reasons for the 2023 deaths on Everest.
The Nepal government has also been criticised for issuing too many permits. They are a major income generator for the small, cash-strapped country, and the government has been reluctant to scale back numbers.