Prayer, anguish in Nepal as sherpas weigh options
- 10 years ago
A time for prayer in Katmandu after the deadliest accident ever on Mount Everest.
At least 13 sherpas were killed Friday when snow and huge chunks of ice swept down a perilous pass on the mountain.
The search is now over for the three sherpa guides still missing.
The accident is focusing attention on the risks sherpas take ---- carrying supplies for foreigners eager to climb the world's highest mountain. Overcrowding on Everest, where the number of fatal accidents has risen in recent decades, although it dropped last year.
Some think there should be no more expeditions this year -- but that can be a tough choice for people with few options. Sherpas can earn up to $5,000 a year in a country with an average annual income of just $700.
SOUNDBITE: CHHRING SHERPA SAYING (Nepali):
"Some people want to return. It's a compulsion. The compulsion is mainly for the money because they don't have any other work.
They are thinking of continuing. In my opi
At least 13 sherpas were killed Friday when snow and huge chunks of ice swept down a perilous pass on the mountain.
The search is now over for the three sherpa guides still missing.
The accident is focusing attention on the risks sherpas take ---- carrying supplies for foreigners eager to climb the world's highest mountain. Overcrowding on Everest, where the number of fatal accidents has risen in recent decades, although it dropped last year.
Some think there should be no more expeditions this year -- but that can be a tough choice for people with few options. Sherpas can earn up to $5,000 a year in a country with an average annual income of just $700.
SOUNDBITE: CHHRING SHERPA SAYING (Nepali):
"Some people want to return. It's a compulsion. The compulsion is mainly for the money because they don't have any other work.
They are thinking of continuing. In my opi