Posted on 06/14/2006 5:50:58 AM PDT by Mr. Brightside
Dying Brit climber 'too big' to rescue off Everest
By MICHAEL FIELD
The New Zealand mountaineer who ordered climbers to leave a dying Briton near the summit of Mt Everest says it was impossible to carry the big man off the peak.
Double amputee Mark Inglis was one of four New Zealanders in a group of 40 who walked past dying David Sharp during their descent of Everest on May 15. Most of them were part of a Discovery Channel film crew, which included Queenstown cameraman Mark Whetu.
The crew filmed the dying British mountaineer in his last conscious moments on the mountain.
Inglis' party and the Discovery crew were under the direction of Himex, a major professional guiding company run by Kiwi mountaineer Russell Brice.
Brice revealed yesterday that Sharp was lying on top of the body of an Indian climber known as "Green Boots". The Indian's body had been in a small 8500m high cave since 1996.
The gruesome events on top of Mt Everest this summer, in which 11 people eventually died, sparked a storm of controversy led by Sir Edmund Hillary, who said the attitude displayed by the climbers was horrifying.
As Inglis was last week having surgery on his frostbitten hands, a fuller story of what happened has begun to emerge as professional climbers and support crews get home.
Brice said on the day of the incident he had been based at the North Col camp, watching his clients' progress through a telescope.
At 1.41am his "sidar" or head sherpa, Phurba Tashi, radioed saying he was at "Green Boots" but made no mention of Sharp. Ten minutes later the main group, including Inglis, reached that point.
"At no stage during the ascent did I know that there was a man in trouble," Brice said.
Most of Brice's climbers reached the summit between 6.15am and 7.03am, but Brice said he noticed two of his clients were ascending too slowly and ordered them down. Both needed help to get off. After reaching the summit, Inglis began his descent and joined the other two climbers at the Third Step at 9.15am.
Fifteen minutes later Brice said "one of the climbers called me to say that there was a big man about to die". This was the first he heard of Sharp's predicament.
"I established that David was still alive but unconscious and that his arms were frozen to the elbow and his legs were frozen to the knee, and that he had frost bite to the nose," Brice said.
"The climber said that David had an oxygen system with him but was not wearing it, and was trying to assist with getting the mask back onto David."
Brice said he was acutely aware of the "struggle" going on to get Inglis and the other two off the mountain and knew the sherpas had been out of camp for more than 10 hours and were low on oxygen.
"I told the climber who encountered David to continue down the mountain as at this altitude and with this terrain it is not possible to carry an unconscious person with only the people that I had on the mountain at that time."
A Turkish group tried to help and Phurba found some oxygen and gave it to Sharp.
"They attempted to get David to his feet, but he kept collapsing, so they shifted David just a few feet into the sun."
Brice said he had worked with Phurba, one of the strongest sherpas on the mountain, for years.
"We have been involved in many self, and assisted rescues over the years, so I know that if there was a chance to help he would willingly do so, and would have immediately called me to start the logistics that would be required. His silence was ominous."
Brice said he had no idea of Sharp's movements before his death and had no reports about him in trouble before finding him at "Green Boots."
He assumed people did not see him on the way up because it was extremely cold and their hoods and oxygen masks would have severely restricted vision.
"Our people saw David, but assumed that this was the body of the Indian who died in exactly the same place in 1996, and whose body I had told members to expect to see," Brice said.
"In fact David was lying right on top of the Indian when Phurba found him on the descent. Our people saw David and assumed that he was already dead."
Brice found out who the dead man was and although it was not his responsibility, telephoned Sharp's family.
"I told them that we had seen David the day before, and that we had left him even though he was still alive, but in an unrecoverable state, and that he was confirmed dead that morning.
"This was a very hard call to make but something that I felt had to be done."
Brice said had he known on the way up that Sharp was in trouble he would have investigated the possibility of a rescue. Since 1994 he had initiated or been involved with 15 major rescues on Everest.
"During this time I have been responsible for the unenviable job of removing about 10 bodies from the mountain, something that we never mention."
I certainly will! Given that each climber probably paid about $15k for the chance to climb Everest what did these climber encounter?
Hmm, a dying man...what shouuld we do? If each us help we lose our $15k, but wait...
The fact book says it can't be done so let just assume he's dead already.
So there you have it "greed,greed,greed"!
The effort to climb Everest is nothing compared to the diffuculty of getting some people around here to think. (not talking about you)
: )
Who was greedy? This guy didn't spend $35,000, hire Sherpa guides and buy high priced equipment.
Other accounts stated that he went on the cheap, by paying only $8,000, using outdated equipment and hiring no Sherpas.
Sounds like HIS GREED did him in.
Really doubt anyone who is fat could haul himself up 25,000 feet of mountain....
If it was me, please just let me die. If my arms and legs are frozen solid, and you save me, what am I going to do after they amputate all 4 limbs? Be third base at the company picnic?
Please refer to all of the bad (but funny) jokes at the beginning of the thread.. ;-)
Very interesting. Thanks.
Well I don't doubt the man is going to have a lot of body parts missing from frostbite, but heck throw you in the water we'll call you Bob. Toss on the floor we'll call you Matt and hang on the wall we'll call you Art.
I've heard some great stories about Jacob's Well (cave diving). Never been in there, myself.
Never been a climber, but if I got killed during an ascent, I think it would be kind of fitting for my body to stay there. As to why people attempt this, I always remember the old poem,
The calm is on the water, and some of us would linger by the shore,
For ships are safe in harbor, but that's not what ships are for.
excuse me but a key question is whether the Brice party saw this chap on the way up and left him their to pursue the Everest peak. Sir Edmund is right on if they considered helping him only on the way down when resources were critical and they were exhausted.
excuse me but a key question is whether the Brice party saw this chap on the way up and left him their to pursue the Everest peak. Sir Edmund is right on if they considered helping him only on the way down when resources were critical and they were exhausted.
Here is the picture. If accurate, it DOES make me rethink my support of the climbers.
But something doesn't add up. Accounts said that he was 300 yards from the summit. This picture claims he was 450 VERTICAL meters from the summit. But that distance is much longer walking up the slope.
This would meant that Mt. Everest would have the world's longest staircase and tallest elevator which would be pretty cool.
"Toss on the floor we'll call you Matt and hang on the wall we'll call you Art."
Pat me on the head and say "Why so Blue?"
I thought they said that he was frozen solid from the knees down and from the elbows down.
Live through that and people start calling you Sir Edmund Stumpy behind your back.
You are right. We need a Himalayans With Disabilities Act!
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