Feature: Chinese climber recalls tragic death of two mountaineers in Nepal

A veteran Chinese climber painfully recalled the events that led to the death of Finnish climber Mika Samuel Mansikka and his Nepalese guide Pemba Sherpa, the first two casualties of the spring mountain climbing season this year in this Himalayan nation.

"We were all together as we tried to fulfill our dream by reaching the top of Mount Annapurna. However, we suffered a tragic incident while returning to the base camp," Chinese climber Zhang Liang told Xinhua in an interview here after returning from the base camp.

The 51-year-old Zhang is a professional climber, who has already made successful expeditions in 11 of the world's 8,000 meter mountains, including Mount Qomolangma, the world's highest peak. This was his second expedition to Annapurna, which was barred by the death of his two team members.

According to Zhang, Nepali guide Pemba Sherpa was leading the team to the base camp. At first they thought that their two teammates have walked faster and may already have reached the camp.

He said that Mansikka could have been trapped in an isolated area of the mountain during the night. He might have died for lack of oxygen as he tried to find his way down, Zhang said.

"I could still see the torchlight in Samuel's head during night, few meters away from our location but we couldn't reach him because of the rough terrain. The mountains, especially at night, are treacherous," Zhang said.

Both climbers lost their lives at around 7,000 meters during their descent from the summit of Mount Annapurna to Camp 4.

Though the spring climbing generally begins in April, a team of seven international climbers and six Sherpa guides, including Zhang, conquered the 8,091 meters tall summit on March 24. Their expedition was arranged by Dreamers Destinations located in Kathmandu.

Annapurna is one of the deadliest mountains of the world that have already claimed the lives of several foreign climbers and Sherpa guides.

According to Zhang, in October last year, at least 43 people were killed and around 200 were injured in Mount Annapurna with several missing as a result of snowstorms and avalanches in the area. As compared to Qomolangma, very few and only the most daring climb Mount Annapurna annually.

Zhang recalled that they were very exhausted during the night. They tried to sing and click videos with each other to keep themselves away from sleepiness. "It is regarded as the best alternative to keep one awake," Zhang said.

The Finland embassy and the expedition agency sent helicopters to the area. The rescue team was able to recover the bodies of the two casualties but there was no way of bringing the bodies to the camp owing to thick snow.

In a separate interview, Temba Tsheri Sherpa of Dreamers Destination Expedition Pvt. Ltd., who is also the world's youngest Qomolangma climber, told Xinhua that they planned the summit climb a bit earlier this year considering the good weather condition. " It was really a success since all the climbers and Sherpas have reached the top but it's painful that we lost two of our clients," Temba Tsheri Sherpa said.

Accidents are common in the mountains of Nepal. Although Nepal has adopted climbing guidelines based on international standards, it still lacks special communication devices and proper weather forecast mechanisms to guide mountaineers.

But Zhang said that he found it easy to climb Nepali mountains as compared to other mountains in the world because the service and arrangements are good. He particularly praised the Nepali Sherpa guides for being very strong and courageous.

This year, most of the expedition teams are leaving for Mount Qomolangma on April 12.

Meanwhile, following last year's tragic incident in Mount Qomolangma that killed 16 Sherpa guides, Nepal's Department of Tourism has placed full-time and dedicated teams in base camps to provide the reliable and adequate communication and safety measures to climbers. Endi