Brit climber, 40, and his guide are missing on Mount Everest after ‘ice fall hits their expedition on Hillary Step sheer rock face on way down from summit’
- Daniel Paul Paterson and Pas Tenji Sherpa have not been heard from since Tuesday
A British climber and his guide are missing on Mount Everest after the ice collapsed and fell during their expedition, according to local reports.
Daniel Paul Paterson, 40, and Pas Tenji Sherpa, 23, have not been heard from since they reached the summit around 4:40 a.m. local time on Tuesday, Nepalese officials said.
“A cornice broke off and washed some climbers, including Daniel and his guide, onto the Tibetan side,” a member of a team at the Everest base camp told The Times.
The collapse is believed to have occurred at Hillary Step, a nearly vertical rock face just below the summit of the world’s highest peak.
An expedition has been launched to find the men, but hopes are fading that anyone could survive for more than a day in an area known as the “death zone” because of its high altitude.
Missing Daniel Paul Paterson, 40, is pictured on May 11 ahead of his climb to the summit
Mr Paterson with his partner Beck Woodhead. She said she hadn’t heard anything about it yesterday
Paterson’s partner Beck Woodhead said yesterday she had not heard from her partner and was waiting for news with their families.
The fitness enthusiast dedicated his climb to a late friend from Wakefield Crossfield Club and recently announced that the group had raised £10,000 for her family.
An avid climber, he had trained in the Himalayas last year and said he was emotional when he saw the summit of Everest. He told his followers, “My dream will always be to overcome this.”
A Sherpa with Mr Paterson’s group said earlier today that the expedition had successfully reached the summit, before sharing the news that the two men had gone missing during the climb.
“Eyewitnesses reported that the incident occurred between Summit Ridge and South Summit and some climbers were swept away in Kangshung Face,” he said.
“Our dedicated search and rescue teams are deployed to the scene. They are working tirelessly to locate our missing climbers. Our thoughts and prayers are with their families during this challenging time.”
The missing men were part of a 15-person team with 8K Expeditions, led by Bolivian climber David Hugo Ayaviri Quispe.
Mr Paterson previously said it had always been his dream to ‘conquer’ the Everest summit
It comes after Mongolian climbers Usukhjargal Tsedendamba, 53, and Purevsuren Lkhagvajav, 31, went missing on Everest on May 13.
The pair, who had not relied on Sherpa guides, were found dead a week later in two different locations after reaching the summit.
Mr Paterson, who received the news along with the rest of his team as they prepared for their own expedition, shared a message with his story with the caption ‘very sad news’.
The British climber’s last message to his Instagram followers was six days ago, when he reshared a friend’s good-luck post saying he would “be back down in six days.”
A Foreign Office spokesperson said this afternoon: ‘We are supporting the family of a British man reported missing in Nepal and are in contact with local authorities.’