Beijing/Qudang, Tibet — A sudden snowstorm on the eastern slopes of Mount Everest has trapped close to 1,000 trekkers and support staff at high-altitude camps in Tibet, prompting a large-scale rescue operation, Chinese state media reported Sunday.
Hundreds of local villagers, police and professional responders have been mobilized to dig out buried tents, clear thigh-deep drifts and reopen access tracks at around 4,900 meters (16,000 feet) near Qudang, a gateway settlement to the Everest Scenic Area in Tingri County. By late Sunday, roughly 350 people had been escorted to safety in Qudang, according to local media cited by Reuters.
Heavy snow began Friday evening and intensified through the weekend, collapsing tents and stranding tour groups as temperatures plunged and visibility deteriorated. “It was so wet and cold — hypothermia was a real risk,” said trekker Chen Geshuang, who reached Qudang with her group. “The weather this year is not normal… it happened all too suddenly.”
Tibet’s Blue Sky Rescue team said it received distress calls from camps reporting collapsed shelters and hikers showing signs of hypothermia. Authorities in Tingri suspended ticket sales and closed entry to the Everest Scenic Area on Saturday as conditions worsened.
The storm struck amid a broader spell of extreme weather across the region. Neighboring Nepal has been hammered by torrential rain, landslides and flash floods that washed away bridges and killed at least 47 people in two days, officials there said. Farther east in China, Typhoon Matmo triggered evacuations of about 150,000 residents after making landfall along the coast.
Rescuers on Everest’s north side are using snowplows, tracked vehicles and human chains to reopen the main approach and evacuate those most vulnerable to exposure, altitude sickness and frostbite. Medical teams in Qudang have set up triage for rewarming and basic treatment; there were no immediate official reports of fatalities, but officials warned that the situation remained fluid.
Autumn is typically a secondary trekking and climbing season on the mountain, which at 8,849 meters (29,032 feet) is the world’s highest peak. While fewer summit bids occur than in spring, the north (Tibetan) approach remains popular with tour groups and trekkers — and can turn hazardous when early winter systems sweep in.
Local authorities urged outfitters and independent travelers to delay itineraries until weather stabilizes. The China Meteorological Administration forecast continued low temperatures and intermittent snowfall at higher elevations through early week, with gradual improvement thereafter.
Mount Everest has faced mounting scrutiny in recent years over crowding, waste and safety risks. The latest storm underscores how quickly high-altitude conditions can deteriorate — and the challenge of mass rescues in thin air where every hour counts.
