A dangerous chunk of glacial ice, or serac, just above Mount Everest’s Base Camp is blocking the climbing route to the summit and shortening the already-brief window for climbers in the busiest spring season.
Nepal’s government has issued 410 permits for tourist climbers this season, with mountaineering a major revenue stream for the small country that is home to eight of the world’s 10 highest peaks.
A team of specialist climbers known as “icefall doctors,” who fix ropes and ladders and clear smaller ice hazards for less-experienced mountaineers, began preparing the route last month. But a large serac above the Khumbu Icefall, at more than 5,300 meters (roughly 17,400 feet), could collapse without warning and trigger a deadly avalanche.
“This is not something you can fix or move,” said Himal Gautam, spokesperson for the Department of Tourism. “It’s natural. We can only wait and assess.”
Icefall doctor Dawa Jangbu Sherpa told AFP the team expect it will clear in a few days. The Khumbu Icefall — a constantly shifting maze of crevasses and towering ice blocks just above Base Camp — is regarded as one of the most dangerous sections on the South Col route even in normal conditions.
Authorities said experts will monitor the serac and “devise an alternative plan if needed.” Officials are also considering helicopter drops of supplies to ensure route preparations stay on schedule. Meanwhile, a remote tent village of around 1,000 people — foreign climbers and support staff — has built up at safer altitudes on the 8,849-meter mountain as teams wait for the summit window.
The spring season, warmer than the autumn window, typically runs from March through May, with acclimatization and base camp preparations in March and April and the main summit attempts in May. Monsoon risks make summer months largely unsafe for climbing despite milder temperatures at lower elevations.
Climbing has become a major industry in the Himalayas since the first confirmed ascent by Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary in 1953. The 410 permits this season are close to the all-time record of 479 set in 2023. Congested routes and “traffic jams” on narrow sections of the mountain have become more common, along with visible signs of overcrowding such as litter and detritus. A shortened window for summit attempts can amplify those risks.
Caution around seracs is informed by past tragedy: in 2014, 16 Nepali guides were killed when a portion of the same glacier sheared off in one of Everest’s deadliest accidents.
Edited by: Sean Sinico