An Indian climber has died while attempting to summit Mount Everest, officials said on Tuesday, bringing the death toll during the current spring climbing season to five.
Banshi Lal, an Indian national, died at HAMS hospital in Kathmandu on May 27 where he was undergoing treatment, according to Rakesh Gurung, chief of mountaineering at the Department of Tourism. The exact cause of Lal’s death is yet to be known.
Lal was rescued from Mount Everest and airlifted to Kathmandu on May 21 following health complications, according to Pemba Sherpa, a director of 8K Expeditions, the agency managing his expedition. He was displaying signs of acute mountain sickness.
With Lal’s death, the fatalities during the 2024 Everest spring expedition season have risen to five, while three climbers are still reported missing.
The Department of Tourism has identified the deceased climbers as Binod Babu Bastakoti, 37, from Nepal; Mongolian climbers Usukhjargal Tsedendamba, 53, and Purevsuren Lkhagvajav, 31; and Kenyan climber Joshua Cheruiyot Kirui, 40.
Three other climbers who are missing are presumed dead. They are British national Daniel Paul Paterson, 40, Pas Tenji Sherpa, 23, and Nawang Sherpa, 44.
Meanwhile, Romanian climber Gabriel Viorel Tabara, 48, died at Camp III while attempting to ascend Lhotse, the world’s fourth-highest peak, which shares a common route with Everest.
