Avalanche kills at least 15 Nepali workers at Himlung Himal base camp

Kathmandu, Nepal. At least 15 Nepali workers were killed when an avalanche buried a mountain camp they were preparing for foreign climbers in central Nepal, a rescue official said on Thursday. It was the deadliest incident of the autumn climbing season, which ends this month.

Avalanche buries base camp

The avalanche struck over the weekend at the base camp of Himlung Himal, a 7,126-metre (23,379-foot) mountain in the northern Manang district. The workers were pitching tents and fixing ropes when the camp was buried.

The foreign climbers had not reached the site at the time of the avalanche. One Nepali worker remains missing.

Rescuers recover 15 bodies

Tul Singh Gurung, president of Nepal National Mountain Guide Association (NNMGA), said rescuers had recovered 15 bodies from the site. Eight were recovered from beneath the snow on Thursday, while seven were retrieved earlier in the week.

“The bodies that were recovered today are expected to be brought by a helicopter to Kathmandu,” Gurung told Reuters.

He said the chances of finding the missing worker were dim and the rescue operation was likely to end.

Growing risks for mountain workers

Thousands of visitors travel to Nepal each year to visit or climb its mountains, providing work for tens of thousands of people as guides, porters and other staff, as well as in tourism-related jobs.

However, the work is becoming increasingly perilous as climate change accelerates the melting of glaciers and ice.