Kathmandu – A Tourism official in Nepal said on Friday that Sherpa Guides collected four bodies and 11 tons of trash from Mount Everest in a month-long clean-up.
Director-General of Nepal’s Department of Tourism, Dandu Ghimire, who stated this in Kathmandu, said that the dead and tons of trash were collected during a month-long clean-up at the mountain.
He said that a group of 12 Sherpa guides retrieved four bodies, dozens of oxygen cylinders as well as discarded cans, ropes, tents and wrappers from several camps on the 8,848-metre peak of the mountain.
“The Sherpas segregated the waste at the base camp. Only recyclable waste was brought to Kathmandu.
“The four bodies, which are yet to be identified, were handed over to forensic experts at a hospital in the capital.
“Officials on Wednesday handed the trash from Everest to a recycling company in Kathmandu,’’ Ghimire said.
During the commercial expeditions on Everest in spring season, mountain guides set up camps and ferry supplies from the base camp to higher camps.
The government rule requires each climber to bring back at least eight kilogrammes of trash, but it’s not widely implemented due to weak regulatory oversight.
While no fewer than 5,000 persons have successfully reached the top of Everest, over 300 have died in their attempts.
Deaths spiked during this year’s April to May climbing season amid concerns of overcrowding, with 11 people losing their lives.