A new video has emerged on social media showing a cornice collapse on Mount Everest, which reportedly left two people missing. The clip also reignites concerns about overcrowding at the world’s highest summit.
The videos, posted on Instagram by mountain guide Vinayak Jaya Malla, shows the cornice collapse as recounts the challenges experienced by the climbers he led during their descent from Everest.
“After summiting, we crossed the Hillary Step, traffic was moving slowly then suddenly a cornice collapsed a few meters ahead of us. There was also a cornice under us,” Malla wrote in his post.
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A post shared by Vinayak jaya malla (@malla.mountaineer)
Recounting the near-death experience, he explained that when the cornice collapsed, four climbers almost perished but were able to self-rescue by staying clipped onto the rope.
‘Coming down was a nightmare’
According to Malla’s post, the incident took place on May 21, and at least two climbers are still missing. “We tried to traverse yet it was impossible due to the traffic on the fixed line,” he added.
Cornices are overhanging edges of snow on a ridge or the crest of a mountain, formed by wind blowing snow over sharp terrain breaks. They present a hazard to climbers for several reasons: they can be hard to identify from the top of a ridge, they can be very sensitive to triggers such as an explosive (or even the weight of a skier), and the weight of a collapsing cornice can trigger a sizable avalanche.
Meanwhile, another user on the platform shared a video showing the traffic line on Everest, with dozens of people in the queue.
“Mt. Everest is not a joke and in fact, quite a serious climb,” wrote Rajan Dwivedi on his post.
Dwivedi’s video from May 20 shows him waiting in a single climbing lane with dozens of climbers all trying to reach the peak.
“This video captured shows what we face on one rope line and negotiating interchanges during the traffic for upstream and downstream!” he said.
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A post shared by Rajan Dwivedi (@everester.raj)
Dwivedi further explained that climbers have to wait for favourable weather patterns when the jet stream pulls away from the mountain, as wind speeds along the summit can otherwise reach 100-240 mph.
“For me, coming down was a nightmare and exhausting while huge line of climbers were coming up to maximize on the weather window!!!” he added.
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