Covid-19 has reached the top of the world: a contag …

A Norwegian mountaineer who intended to climb Everest tested positive for coronavirus and had to be interned in Nepal. The case is a blow to plans to resume activities in the Himalayas after a 2020 season which, following the pandemic, devastated the tourism industry in this region and around the world.

“My diagnosis is covid-19,” he said. Erlend Ness via Facebook. “I’m fine (…) The hospital is treating me,” he added. On his page in this social network, the climber shared photos of Everest base camp, 5,364 meters above sea level, and a video of his helicopter evacuation on April 15.

Nepal recently relaxed quarantines for visitors. The restrictions have been tightened in order to resume welcoming climbers in the season which has just started.

Other cases

A Kathmandu hospital said there were more positive cases from Everest, although they did not specify how much.

“I cannot provide details, but some evacuees from Everest have tested positive,” Prativa Pandey, medical director of CIWEC hospital in Kathmandu, told AFP.

“One person was evacuated on April 15, but we were told he was suffering from pneumonia and was being treated in isolation. This was the only information we received, ”added Mira Acharya, spokesperson for Nepal’s Ministry of Tourism. Thus, only confirmed the positive of Ness.

However, Norwegian TV station NRK, which interviewed Ness, said a Sherpa in his group also contracted coronavirus. “Really, I hope no one gets infected with the coronavirus in the high mountains. It is impossible to evacuate people by helicopter when they are over 8,000 meters,” Erlend Ness told NRK.

The Ness case has raised concerns at base camp. In addition, it opens questions about the continuity of the season..

The concern that exists among climbers stationed at the foot of Everest was reflected by Dawa Steven, Sherpa and skipper of Asian Trekking company. “When we learned that there might be a case of covid in the base camp, all my staff and others stepped up to cover their faces, sanitize their hands and avoid close contact with the stay, ”he said.

For this season, Nepal had already granted 377 climbing permits, and the number is expected to exceed 381 in 2019.

From the arrival of hundreds of climbers at the foot of Everest, it has become a veritable tent city. The same scene is reproduced on the skin of other Himalayan mountains.

The risks of covid-19 at altitude

the oxygen decreases at altitude, making it more difficult to breathe there, which would increase the medical risk for climbers infected with covid-19.

Last year, the pandemic was declared shortly before the start of the mountaineering season, forcing Nepal to close its borders. The impact of this situation has been devastating for the thousands of people, from guides to hoteliers, who make a living from these activities.