December 11, 2023 Angela Benavides 8000ers | Everest
The Himalayan Database has updated its spring 2023 statistics. The Everest figures confirmed our sad suspicion: that the figure of 17 deaths was not the whole tally. The final figure, confirmed by Nepal authorities, adds one more to the tally. Not exactly great news to celebrate International Mountain Day.
Preliminary data at the end of the Everest season showed 17 people dead on the mountain. But all the information wasn’t in, and we feared that 2023 might beat all previous records. This included 2014 (in which 17 perished, including 14 in a serac collapse near Camp 1).
Until now, 2015 had the most deaths. That year, a major earthquake triggered an avalanche on Pumori that partly buried Everest Base Camp. A total of 18 people died that spring.
List of casualties
The Himalayan Database compiled the list of casualties below. It indicates (when available) the time of death and the altitude at which the climbers died. The three first Sherpas on the list perished while fixing the route, in a serac accident in the Khumbu Icefall. All the other climbers died after their health deteriorated from altitude, exhaustion, and cold.
| Apr 12 | 04:00 | 5700 | Dawa Chhiri (Da Chhiri) Sherpa (Phurte, Nepal) | ||||
| Apr 12 | 04:00 | 5700 | Lakpa Rita Sherpa (Tesho, Nepal) | ||||
| Apr 12 | 04:00 | 5700 | Pemba Tenzing Sherpa (Tesho, Nepal) | ||||
| May 1 | 6400 | Jonathan Reuel Sugarman (USA) | |||||
| May 16 | 7200 | Phurba (Furba) Sherpa (Makalu-9, Nepal) | |||||
| May 17 | 7900 | Victor Brinza (Moldova) | |||||
| May 18 | 8750 | Xue-Bin Chen (China) | |||||
| May 18 | 2860 | Ms. Suzanne Leopoldina Jesus (India) | |||||
| May 19 | 8750 | Awang Askandar Ampuan Yaacub (Malaysia) | |||||
| May 19 | 8500 | Shrinivas Sainis Dattatraya (Singapore) | |||||
| May 19 | 7900 | Muhammad Hawari Hashim (Malaysia) | |||||
| May 19 | 8400 | Jason Bernard Kennison (Australia) | |||||
| May 23 | 6400 | Ang Kami Sherpa (Patle-1, Nepal) | |||||
| May 24 | 7300 | Swapnil Adinath Garad (India) | |||||
| May 24 | 7500 | Petrus Albertyn Swart (Canada) | |||||
| May 25 | 01:00 | 8750 | Ranjit Kumar Shah (Nepal) | ||||
| May 25 | 01:00 | 8750 | Lhakpa Nuru Sherpa (Phakding, Nepal) | ||||
| May 25 | 8760 | Szilard Suhajda (Hungary) |
Detail of a climber’s body being carried down from Everest. Photo: Elia Saikaly
Summits, no-O2, and prices
The final count shows a 2023 total of 479 Everest permits and 656 summits. Of these, 393 were Nepalese climbers, mostly porters and guides, who needed no permit.
Only three people summited without supplementary oxygen — Sajid Sadpara of Pakistan on May 14, Mateo Isaza of Colombia one day later, and Muhammad Hawari bin Hashim of Malaysia on May 18.
Unfortunately, Hawari bin Hashim went missing after heading back up from Camp 4 to help an expedition partner, another Malayasian, in trouble. That partner ultimately died, and Hawari bin Hashim was left for dead. Mateo Isaza also told ExplorersWeb that he saw Phurba, a sherpa member of a cleaning expedition, in dire trouble a couple of days later as he descended from the summit.
Prices are expected to increase sharply in 2025, from the current $11,000 per person to $15,000. Nepal’s Ministry of Tourism said it would help to discourage some climbers to prevent crowding. However, the growing success of luxury expeditions ranging from $100,000 to $300,000 suggests that an increase of $4,000 to the base permit cost will hardly make a difference.
