There are already 8 people killed by congestion at the summit of Everest

The impressive traffic jams in the so-called "death zone" of this 8,848-meter mountain are due to two reasons. On the one hand, the weather conditions because between late April and late May are less extreme and more advantageous for the promotion. Thus, all expeditions launch the final badault on Everest during the same days.

The peculiarity of 2019 is the increase in the number of mountaineers, a phenomenon that has increased over the last decade. To get to Everest, the Government of Nepal grants a permit that costs $ 11,000. But the cost of the adventure rises to around 80,000 euros if one takes into account other essential expenses, such as Sherpas fees that guide them up to the end of the day. Mountain peak. Earlier this month, the Nepalese authorities had already confirmed a record number of promotion applications this year. Until Thursday, some 550 mountaineers had crowned the highest mountain in the world, according to official data.

But the increase of "traffic" by mountaineers increases the risks. In the last 48 hours, two Indians have died, an Austrian and a Nepalese. Indian Kalpana Das, 52, reached the summit but died Thursday afternoon when she came down. His compatriot Nihal Bagwan, 27, also died in the descent.

"He was stranded in the bottleneck for over 12 hours and was exhausted.Sherpa guides took him to Camp 4 where he died," said Keshav Paudel of the day. Peak Promotion agency. This same bottleneck is the one that almost took the life of Cordovan Birn. "You can not stand at 30 degrees below zero, that's death," he told Clarin from Kathmandu hospital where he is hospitalized.