US climber dies on Everest as climbing season begins

The 69-year-old mountaineer was on an acclimatisation rotation at Camp 2 at around 6,400 metres (21,000 feet) when he died on May 1

A US climber has died on Mount Everest, his expedition organiser said Tuesday, in the first foreign death on the highest mountain in the world this season.

The 69-year-old mountaineer was on an acclimatisation rotation at Camp 2 at around 6,400 metres (21,000 feet) when he died on Monday.

"He was feeling unwell and passed away at Camp 2. Efforts are underway to bring (back) his body," Pasang Tshering Sherpa of Beyul Adventure told AFP.

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Sherpa said that bad weather was hampering the recovery efforts.

Beyul Adventure is a local partner of US-based expedition organiser International Mountain Guides.

The spring Everest climbing season had a tragic start last month with the death of three Nepali climbers on Everest.

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The trio were crossing the treacherous Khumbu icefall as part of a supply mission when a block of glacial ice fell and swept them into a deep crevasse.

Nepal has already issued 466 permits to foreign climbers, and since most will need a guide, more than 900 people will try and summit this season, which runs until early June.

This could once again result in heavy traffic and bottlenecks en route to the summit, especially if there is a shorter climbing window because of unfavourable weather.

On average, around five climbers die every year on the world's highest peak.

But in 2019, 11 people died, with four of the deaths blamed on overcrowding that year.

Nepal is home to eight of the world's 10 highest peaks and welcomes hundreds of adventurers each spring climbing season, when temperatures are warm and winds are typically calm.