🔗 Share this article The World's Highest Peak Trekkers Report 'Extreme' Weather as Large-Scale Operation Continues Trekkers have recounted encountering "harsh" situations after an unseasonable snowstorm during one of China's most crowded festive periods stranded hundreds of individuals on Mount Everest, sparking a massive rescue operation. Rescue Operations Underway Chinese authorities stated that approximately 350 people had descended safely but at least 200 remained stranded at the Everest Scenic Area, located to the east of the mountain, on the Tibetan side of the border. Crowds of tourists had traveled to the region for "Golden Week," an week-long holiday period in China. However, Chinese authorities, who control the Tibetan Autonomous Region, said intense snow had affected the area on Friday and Saturday night, stranding hundreds of people at campsites at an altitude of more than 4,900 meters (16,000 feet). "This was the harshest conditions I've experienced in all my hiking adventures, without question," a Chinese trekker stated on Weibo, describing a "intense snowstorm on the eastern slope" of Everest. "I looked up in the middle of the night and noticed that the snow had almost buried the top," shared another trekker on Xiaohongshu. "It was the first time I truly felt the fear of being buried alive." Eyewitness Reports One Chinese trekker said their party had been "too frightened to sleep" on Saturday as accumulation rapidly built up around their tents, forcing them to remove it every 90 minutes. They chose to go down on the next day as the weather worsened. "During the descent, we met our guide’s parent who had come looking for him. That's when we discovered the storm was intense in the valley as well; villagers, unable to reach their children on the mountain, were extremely worried." The northern and eastern side of Everest is more accessible than sites on the neighboring side of the border and attracts high numbers of visitors for easier trekking, not requiring ascent of the peak. Visual Evidence Images and footage shared on the internet depicted tents covered by snow and lines of trekkers moving through deep drifts to get down the mountain. "The snow was extremely thick, and the path very slick. Trekkers often slipped – some fell, some were jostled by pack animals," said one, who added that all safely descended and were transported by bus. Latest Developments By the weekend, approximately 350 people had reached Qudang, a small town about 30 miles away from the Tibet-side base camp of Everest, "in good health," state media announced. No fewer than 200 additional remained trapped but had been contacted, the updates said. Media outlets stated that scores of rescuers had gone up the mountain to help people and remove accumulation from blocking the way out. Officials provided minimal updates or updated information about the rescue effort on Monday. It was also not clear if the storm had impacted individuals on the north face of Everest, also in Tibet. The area is tightly controlled by the Chinese government, and journalistic access is restricted. The conditions also appears to have have affected local communications, with calls to local businesses not connecting. A number of hikers reported electricity was cut in Qudang when they arrived. Seasonal Context October is a peak season for the area, with usually calm and pleasant weather, but one trekker, one of 18 participants of a hiking party that returned to Qudang, commented that the weather this year was "not normal." "The guide told us he had not experienced conditions like this in the fall. And it happened very abruptly." The local tourism authority announced admissions and access to the Everest Scenic Area were halted from Saturday. Regional Impact Neighbouring countries were affected as well by extreme weather. Heavy rains triggered landslides and flash floods that have blocked roads, washed away bridges, and killed at least 47 individuals since Friday in Nepal.