Search party retrieves body of Dutch climber killed on Everest

A helicopter has retrieved the body of a Dutch climber who died last week on Mount Everest and attempts are being made to retrieve the bodies of two other climbers.

The body of Eric Arnold, from Rotterdam, was flown from Everest directly to a hospital in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu. He died last Friday near South Col after showing signs of altitude sickness.

Attempts are being made to retrieve the bodies of Australian climber Maria Strydom and Indian climber Subhash Paul, but it is unclear when they will be taken to Kathmandu.

Three climbers have died and two are presumed dead on Everest, while nearly 400 have scaled the 8,850 metre peak this month. A search is continuing for two Indian climbers missing since the weekend, but their survival is unlikely given the harsh conditions at such high altitude.

This year’s busy climbing season follows two years of disasters that virtually emptied the mountain.

Few climbers are left on the mountain who have not made their summit attempts. The end of May usually brings the monsoon season and bad weather that makes climbing the mountain impossible.