Reuters
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The Nepali and Chinese sides of the Everest region were closed to tourism on Wednesday due to unseasonably heavy snowfall, with a helicopter attempting to rescue stranded climbers crashing into a deep snowdrift.
The area around Everest, visited by thousands of trekkers and mountaineers, has been covered in snow since Monday as a cyclone from the Bay of Bengal crisscrossed India, causing the second heavy snowfall in the Himalayas this month.
Nepali authorities have canceled trekking on many hiking routes due to rain at lower elevations and heavy snowfall at higher elevations, and have urged hikers not to venture out or continue trekking in the Annapurna, Manaslu and Dhaulagiri regions, which are home to some of the world’s highest peaks.
Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authority spokesperson Gyanendra Bhoor said in a statement that a small civilian helicopter flying to Lobuche, near Everest Base Camp, to rescue stranded trekkers crashed while attempting to land.
CAAN video showed the helicopter slipping and lying on its side in the snow during landing. The pilot survived and was later rescued. It is unclear whether the climbers were rescued.
Meteorological officials predicted heavy rain and snow on Thursday and Friday due to the passage of Cyclone Monta, which hit India’s southeastern state of Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday night.
Ticket sales had been suspended on the Tibetan side of Everest since Tuesday afternoon as icy roads reduced visibility and made it impossible for vehicles to pass, according to the Tingri County Tourism Bureau.
It is unclear whether there are any tourists trapped within the Everest region of Tibet. The Tibetan government press office did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
Temperatures in Tingri are expected to drop further below freezing this week, according to weather forecast data.
In early October, a snowstorm left hundreds of trekkers stranded near the eastern Tibetan face of Everest. A massive rescue operation that lasted several days in sub-zero conditions brought all the climbers to safety.
More than 50 people have died in Nepal due to floods and landslides caused by heavy rains.
