Climbers attempting to scale Mount Everest die on world's highest peak
KATHMANDU, Nepal -- Two foreign climbers attempting to scale Mount Everest have died on the world's highest peak, a Nepal mountaineering official said Monday. Members of their expedition teams reported a Japanese climber died Monday and a Macedonian died on Sunday, said Gyanendra Shrestha, who is stationed at Everest's base camp during the climbing season and received the reports of the deaths.
The Japanese climber was identified as 35-year-old Nobukazu Kuriki and the Macedonian as 63-year-old Gjeorgi Petkov.
Kuriki was a known mountaineer who had climbed many of the world's most challenging peaks. This was reportedly his eighth attempt to summit Mount Everest. He lost most of his fingers due to frostbite during an unsuccessful attempt in 2012.
The bodies were retrieved from the mountain on Monday and were flown by helicopters to Kathmandu, where they were expected to have autopsies.
It was still unclear how they died but the Macedonian is believed to have suffered from cardiac arrest, Shrestha said.
Kuriki was found dead in a tent at an elevation of over 24,200 feet, Shrestha said, according to the Reuters news agency.
Some 340 foreign climbers and their Sherpa guides are attempting to scale Everest this month and many succeeded in the past week during good weather. Teams have to end their attempts by the end of this month as weather conditions deteriorate.
