Australian climber dies on Mt Everest: Jason Bernard Kennison ‘unresponsive’ at summit

An Australian climber has died on Mount Everest, the tenth fatal accident on the world’s highest mountain this year.

Jason Bernard Kennison, 40, died after becoming unresponsive at the summit on Friday, according to his expedition organizer.

Mr. Kennison had survived a bad car accident in 2006, which forced him to relearn how to walk – before sustaining spinal nerve damage again years later.

He continued his goal of climbing the mountain to raise money for Spinal Cord Injuries Australia.

Asian Trekking chief Dawa Steven Sherpa confirmed that Mr Kennison was taken to the balcony after reaching the top of the mountain.

“Because the oxygen cylinders they were carrying were almost empty, they decided to descend to Camp 4 in the hope that they could climb back up with oxygen cylinders to rescue him,” he told AFP.

“It was the high winds and bad weather that prevented them from going back and taking him down. He died on the balcony.’

Mr. Kennison is the sixth person to die on the mountain among non-Nepalites, and the 10th overall in 2023.

Last week, four people died on the mountain, including a man from China who ‘fell’ last Thursday while trying to reach the top and a woman from India.

Mr. Kennison became unresponsive at the summit of Mount Everest (pictured) before being brought down on Friday

A man from Moldova also died of illness on Wednesday, and a Sherpa was killed on his descent from the mountain on Tuesday.

American mountaineer Jonathan Reuel Sugarman, 69, was killed on the mountain after becoming unwell earlier this month, while three Nepalese climbers were killed in April.

There has been a significant spike in deaths on the mountain this year, after three deaths were reported throughout the entire 2022 climbing season.

More to come