Blizzard traps hundreds on Mount Everest as rescue teams race to save lives

A massive and sudden blizzard on Mount Everest’s Tibetan slopes trapped nearly 1,000 hikers in remote camps during China’s National Day holiday weekend, according to state media reports.

Reuters and Jimu news reported Sunday that at least 350 people have so far reached safety, while contact has been made with several hundred others still stranded in the snowbound region.

The storm struck Friday, dumping heavy snow and rain across the Himalayas, reports said. 

The worst conditions came near the eastern Kangshung face of Everest, in Tibet’s Karma Valley, where elevations average over 13,779 ft.

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The snowfall continued into Saturday, blocking roads and trails and cutting off access to several routes popular during China’s eight-day National Day holiday.

China Central Television (CCTV) also said the several hundred rescued trekkers were brought to Qudang township under the guidance of local rescue teams. 

Hundreds more are expected to reach the area in stages as villagers and emergency workers clear deep snow from mountain passes. 

Jimu news, a state-backed outlet, estimated that nearly 1,000 people, including hikers, guides and local support staff, had been trapped when the blizzard struck.

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Rescue efforts have involved hundreds of local villagers and members of Tibet’s Blue Sky Rescue Team, who reported receiving distress calls about collapsed tents and cases of hypothermia. 

“It was so wet and cold in the mountains, and hypothermia was a real risk,” one trekker, Chen Geshuang, who was part of an 18-strong trekking team who made it to Qudang, told Reuters.

“The weather this year is not normal. The guide said he had never encountered such weather in October. And it happened all too suddenly,” Chen said.

The Tibetan regional government is said to have organized coordinated search and rescue operations, sending heavy machinery to reopen snow-blocked roads leading to the affected campsites.

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Authorities suspended ticket sales and closed entry to the Everest Scenic Area on Saturday evening, according to the Tingri County Tourism Company’s official WeChat account. 

It remains unclear whether trekkers on the north face of Everest, also located in Tibet but more easily accessible by road, were impacted by the same weather system.

The extreme weather has also battered neighboring Nepal, where heavy rains have triggered landslides and flash floods, killing at least 47 people since Friday. 

Thirty-five people died in separate landslides in the eastern Ilam district near the Indian border, while others remain missing after being swept away by floodwaters, per Reuters.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Central Tibetan Administration for comment.