Trekkers have recounted encountering "extreme" conditions after an unexpected blizzard during one of China's most crowded holiday weekends stranded numerous of people on Mount Everest, sparking a massive rescue effort.
Chinese authorities reported that approximately 350 people had descended safely but at least 200 remained stranded at the Everest Scenic Area, located to the east of the mountain, on the Tibetan side of the border.
Large groups of tourists had traveled to the area for "Golden Week," an week-long holiday period in China. However, Chinese authorities, who administer the Tibetan Autonomous Region, said heavy snowfall had hit the area on the weekend, trapping numerous of individuals at tent sites at an elevation of more than 4,900 meters (16,000 feet).
"This was the most extreme weather I've ever faced in all my hiking experiences, without question," Dong Shuchang said on social media, describing a "intense blizzard on the eastern slope" of Everest.
"I looked up in the middle of the night and saw that the accumulation had nearly covered the peak," shared another trekker on a social platform. "It was the first time I truly felt the fear of being engulfed by snow."
One Chinese trekker mentioned their group had been "too frightened to sleep" on that night as snow rapidly built up around their tents, compelling them to remove it hourly. They chose to descend on Sunday as the conditions worsened.
"On the way, we encountered our guide's father who had come looking for him. It was then we discovered the storm was intense in the lowlands too; villagers, unable to reach their children on the mountain, were deeply concerned."
The northern and eastern side of Everest is easier to reach than sites on the neighboring side of the border and draws large crowds of visitors for easier trekking, without summiting the peak.
Photos and video shared on the internet depicted tents buried in snow and lines of hikers walking through deep drifts to descend the mountain.
"The snow was very deep, and the path very slick. Hikers stumbled frequently – some fell, others were bumped by yaks," noted a trekker, who added that all safely descended and were picked up by bus.
By the weekend, about 350 people had reached Qudang, a village about 30 miles away from the Tibetan starting point of Everest, "in good health," state media reported.
No fewer than 200 additional remained trapped but had been contacted, the updates indicated. Local news stated that hundreds of rescuers had gone up the mountain to assist those trapped and remove accumulation from obstructing the way out.
Officials provided minimal updates or new details about the operation on Monday. It was also not clear if the storm had impacted anyone on the north face of Everest, within the same region. The region is tightly controlled by the Chinese government, and media entry is restricted. The conditions also seemed to have disrupted local communications, with calls to local businesses not connecting. A number of hikers reported power was out in Qudang when they arrived.
Autumn is a peak season for the region, with usually calm and pleasant conditions, but one trekker, one of 18 members of a trekking group that made it back to Qudang, said that the climate this year was "unusual."
"The guide said he had not experienced such weather in October. And it happened all too suddenly."
The local tourism authority announced admissions and entry to the Everest Scenic Area were suspended from the weekend.
Neighbouring countries were affected as well by severe conditions. Heavy rains caused landslides and sudden flooding that have closed routes, washed away bridges, and claimed the lives of at least 47 people since the start of the weekend in the neighboring country.
