KATHMANDU, Oct 1 — At least 15 Nepali workers were killed when an avalanche buried a mountain camp they were preparing in central Nepal for foreign climbers, in the deadliest incident of the Autumn climbing season ending this month.
The avalanche buried the base camp of the 7,126m Himlung Himal mountain in the northern Manang district over the weekend, where the Nepali workers were pitching tents and fixing ropes. One remains missing.
The Nepal National Mountain Guide Association's president Tul Singh Gurung said that rescuers have so far recovered 15 bodies from the site.
Eight bodies were recovered from under the snow today, while the other seven were retrieved earlier this week.
“The bodies that were recovered today are expected to be brought by a helicopter to Kathmandu,” he told Reuters.
Gurung added that the chances of finding the one missing worker were dim and the rescue operation is likely to wind up.
The foreign climbers had not reached the site when the avalanche hit.
Each year, thousands of visitors flock to Nepal to visit or climb its mountains, creating work for tens of thousands of people as guides, porters, and other staff, as well as in tourism-related jobs.
However, as climate change accelerates melting of glaciers and ice, the work is becoming increasingly perilous.
