What Kills Climbers on Everest; Avalanches & Yeti or Something Else?

When news spreads that a climber died during an expedition, first thing that comes to one’s mind is avalanches, falls and respiratory problems or even monster attacks. However, latest study reveals that most of the deaths in climbers are caused by brain damage. Paul Firth, coauthor of the study concludes that nobody is ever attacked by any Yeti or anything else.

The injury in brain results from swelling in the brain which results in confusion and lack of coordination caused by altitudes. Coauthor Kent Moore explains this phenomenon, “With the low barometric pressure and lack of oxygen, there tends to be a seepage of fluid out of the blood vessels. When this happens in the brain, it causes swelling. It tends to impair cognitive function. That’s probably what causes a lot of the deaths.” Climbers with this problem fall behind, become lethargic, and may even become disoriented. All these factors have nothing to do with their level of physical fitness.

On account of this malfunction of brain 1.3 percent of the motivated climbers who dare to test their mettle by climbing the highest mountain of the world face death before returning to their base camps. The real cause of the deaths of climbers was unknown or misinterpreted for long because the host of hazards awaiting these climbers included extreme cold, whipping winds, changing weather, treacherous climbs and avalanches.

The study looked at 212 deaths that occurred during climbing expeditions involving some 14,000 mountaineers and Sherpa’s (natives of Nepal who act as guides for Everest climbers) between 1921 and 2006. It was found that 73 percent fatalities occur when the climbers are on their way back to base camps, either after reaching the peak or when they abort their effort on summit and were on their way back.

These findings also support Everest expedition leader Brian Jones observations that climbers are in the most danger when they refuse to give up on their dreams of reaching the summit, push themselves too hard, and run into trouble on the way down. True, will power and determination is a key to success but facing reality and accepting the limitation of a human physical endurance threshold level is vital to successfully achieve extreme endeavors.