Responsibility and Death on Everest: An Adventurist Editorial
April 25, 2007
I am finding something a little bit disturbing as the 2007 Everest climbing season takes shape. First, I am going to post three little snippets and then I will go in to more detail:
“Gazing up at the Col we were mesmerized by the slow train of “black dots”, gasping their way higher - sometimes so close together they looked conjoined. It looked to me as there were far too many climbers per rope section for things to be “safe” - it would only take one to slip and fall, dragging others, for the anchors to be ripped free from the ice owing to the obvious overload.” David Tait
“Betsy raised everyone’s eyebrows when she tried to attach her crampons to her boots upside down. “I’m not a climber,” she later admitted, qualifying that ten years ago she wore crampons on a trekking peak in Nepal, but that guides and Sherpas had looked after her climbing needs.” Discovery Channel Everest Team Blog
“Everest isn’t the place to learn how to climb. Betsy misrepresented her mountaineering experience to me.” Himex Expedition Leader Russell Brice
First off, David Tait’s comment is not surprising. I have mentioned previously how crowded Everest was going to be this season. There are pretty close to 1,000 people on Mt. Everest right now stationed in various camps.
What does surprise me is that after so many previous problems with Expeditions trying to manuever large groups of people on Everest–that they are still doing this. This is looking for a disaster!
The ropes these climbers are currently using to move their way up higher on Everest are not made to support weight. Yes, they are anchored in the ground…well, in ice and snow anyways, but as we all know ice and snow has a tendency to shift and melt. These ropes are suppose to be used as guide ropes to keep people on track and let them know where they are going.
And David is right, one false move by someone higher up and…well it is just a disaster waiting to happen.
Secondly, David Tait is climbing with Russell Brice’s Himex team, which by the way is being filmed by The Discovery Channel this season for another episode of Everest: Beyond the Limits.
It seems that the Himex team, and maybe this is due to more publicity coming their way with the Discovery crew on hand, is having a problem with a couple of people and their general knowledge and know-how of mountain climbing.
With Russell Brice’s previous experiences on Everest it would seem that he would be taking better precautions against disaster, especially when his own Expedition Company is involved.
I don’t know Russell personally. I have read about Russell though in print and on the internet and many people are pretty harsh on their feelings with him–the reasonings, I am not so sure of. I know he was there for the David Sharp tragedy and I also know people were very critical for the way he handled things early on with this tragic death.
Everest has a magic that draws people in. The life and death challenge–the struggle to accomplish something enormous in the world and leave a legacy of sorts behind.
A lot of people have questioned why some of these “inexperienced” climbers are allowed to attempt something that has brought about so much death to even some of the greatest of climbers, Rob Hall and Scott Fischer in ‘96 for example.
Plain and simple, money and prestige. These companies earn tens of thousands of dollars per person for a try at the elusive and sometimes deadly Everest summit.
If disaster strikes someone with little experience, it is chalked up to “inexperience”, but my feelings on this are that the Expedition leaders must have a responsibility to know their clients and also know that their clients have previous experience in these sorts of situations.
Should a climber be blamed if they do perish on the mountain or should the Expedition leader in some way be held responsible if it is shown to be caused from a lack of experience from a climber on their team?
These are both tough questions. The Expedition leaders are running a business. They make money doing this for a living. If someone asks me to take them to Everest and offers me $75,000 to do so, you bet I would do it. Experience or no experience, $75,000 is a lot of money to turn away.
On the other hand, these people that are paying for this “experience” are buying the knowledge and know-how of these great climbers–in other words, putting their lives in someone else’s hands–and hoping that they may have an attempt to summit Everest.
Yes, everyone knows Everest can be deadly. Every year people perish trying to accomplish their dreams, but year after year, more and more people are flocking for the opportunity that these climbs offer.
I personally feel that it should be the responsibility of the Expedition leaders to know who they are leading…and also have a say if that person should be allowed to continue on. If one person puts themselves in danger, that is one thing. If one person puts a whole party of say 20 people in danger than that person should be held accountable for their actions and not allowed to continue on.
As these climbing expeditions seem to get bigger and bigger every year, so are the inherit dangers. As David Tait mentioned–one false move- and 20 people could die. Who should be held responsible? Plain and simple–the Expedition Leaders.
They are the ones in command. They know the ins and outs of Everest like no one else–and they are being paid to provide the services they are giving.
The Expedition leaders know, or they should anyways, when things are not looking good. Twenty people on one line–the expedition leader should be held responsible for not sending up “groups” rather than the whole army at once, so to speak, and putting so many people’s lives in unnecessary danger.
I am not bashing on Himex or Russell Brice. These same scenes of overcrowding and climber “inexperience” are taking place in different camps and expeditions all over Everest at this time. I am just afraid that hindsight is not being evaluated as strongly as foresight and it will continue to be this way until more lives are lost in what bystanders will later call a “predictable tragedy”.
From The Adventurist Vault:
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Dear Alan,
Thanks for your great post, and your excellent articles - lots of great information out here, and it is nice to see good opinion, thoughts, and ideas on Everest and climbing in general in a new format with fresh ideas! (And, thanks for the link to The
MountainWorld Blog!)
As an Everest veteran (5 expeditions, 2 summits, and many other trips to the Himalaya), I had some thoughts to share regarding the expedition leaders on Everest, Russell Brice, etc.
I agree with you (and David Tait) that there is a serious overcrowding issue going on these days on the hill, and, more seriously, a severe lack of responsibility with some of the expedition leaders/guide services. This is a multi-faceted issue, and a complex one, so I won’t try to make any definitive judgments, but do have some general opinions.
First and foremost, I have been a guide since 1993, working for Rainier Mountaineering, International Mountain Guides, and several other companies. So, I obviously don’t have a problem with guiding. I decided though, long ago (after guiding Cho Oyu my first time in 1997) that guiding Everest is not for me - put simply, it conflicts with my guiding philosophy, which is that my job is to get a client home, not necessarily to the top, and I want to be able to reasonably guarantee that I can get them out of a jam on the summit ridge of “Peak X” should they get into one. I feel that on Everest this is a stretch at best, and thus have not guided there.
That said, however, I recognize that there are differing philosophies and risk tolerances amongst guides, and I have no inherent issue with guiding clients on Everest. And, likewise, I don’t have a problem if someone with $75,000 to spend and no climbing experience is allowed on a trip by Russell Brice, Eric Simonson, or Joe Schmo. The problem comes in when that client - with lots of money and little experience - is not dealt with firmly and honestly. If they prove themselves to be quick learners, natural climbers, strong at altitude, and generally up to the task of climbing Everest with a guide, then they should be allowed to do so. Sadly, though, some expedition organizers out there do not approach clients with firmness or honesty (some don’t even have leaders on the expedition), and this is where the problem lies. Without the right approach from the start, a client who has no business being high on Everest very well might find him or herself up there…risking their own life and limb and those of other teams.
In my Everest expeditions, I have worked with Eric Simonson and IMG on 4 trips (3 to the Northeast Ridge and 1 to the Southeast) and 1 expedition with Russ and Himex to the Northeast Ridge. Without exception, we were involved in rescues on each and every one of these trips. Most of those rescues came from teams with little organization and decision making failures high on the mountain. Some were eerily reminiscent of the tragedies of 1996, which will most likely be repeated time and again.
I can say, however, that Russell Brice and Eric Simonson are the tops in the business. They lead well organized, well-funded, top-notch trips to Everest. They are not afraid to tell someone they have no business being on the mountain. (As a result of their cut-to-the-chase honesty, they have enemies as you note and people who say bad things about them.) Their expeditions generally set the fixed lines & establish the climbing route. They are the ones who have the Gamow bags, extra oxygen, spare tents, and an on-call duty jeep for emergency evacuations from Basecamp. They are the ones who, in short, spend tons of money, time, and effort to clean up other people’s messes on the mountain.
And, equally if not more important, Himex and IMG both hire the best Sherpas in the business - and treat them extremely well. Sherpas are eager to work with both outfits, and come back year after year.
Ok, enough on that…in terms of the Expedition leaders being responsible for who they are leading and what is happening on the mountain, I couldn’t agree with you more. I think that Russ operates that way, and so does IMG. But, there are lots of expeditions on the mountain, and many lack that ethic - some even lack a tangible leader.
My feeling? The regulatory power comes from both the Chinese and Nepalese governments. Granted, Everest climbing is a cash cow for them, and both governments are reticent to regulate it in any way - aside from collecting permit fees. However, it is in their best interests to regulate the expeditions they grant permits to. If an expedition outfitter shows irresponsible actions repeatedly, they should not be issued permits for future expeditions. Simple. There is one company who, according to certain sources, is responsible for 25% of the deaths on the North Side. This is inexcusable, shows repeated irresponsible behavior, and they should no longer be issued Everest permits.
As you mentioned, money talks, and some outfits will always cave to the almighty dollar, accepting people on expeditions who have no business being there. The issue comes to a head high on the mountain: Are they responsible enough to make the right decisions regardless of what was paid for the trip?
Anyway, I could go on and on…Enough said.
Great article, and thanks again for your insights! Keep on reporting!
All the best,
Jake Norton
MountainWorld Productions
The
MountainWorld Blog
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