-- An Account of the Rescue of South Korean Alpinists

A South Korean alpinist party was stranded at the base camp by a blizzard on the east side of Mount Qomolangma (Mount Everest) from October 16-19.

On the morning of October 21, shortly after receiving the information about the stranded Korean climbers, the Tibet Alpinist Society rushed a rescue team to the Koreans with a 56-year-old veteran Tibetan mountaineer at the head of the team. The base camp can be reached only if a snow-capped mountain over 4700 m above sea level has been crossed. At noon on October 22, the rescue team arrived at a village 670 km from Lhasa. At the village, 10 carriers and 21 yaks were hired and sufficient materials were provided for the rescue. The yaks was a big headache for the march on the snow path. The path was covered by a knee-high snow, the yaks were bogged down in the snow from time to time and had to be dragged out by the rescuers.

On October 25 the team tramped over a mountain pass 4890 m above sea level. The eyes were hurt by rays reflected from the white snow and the carriers' legs were cut by the rock slabs. On the 4th day, they arrived at the Black Lake, a plateau lake with limpid deep water and ice at its edges. Unfortunately a yak slipped down the mountain slope. The convenience noodles and beverages carried by a yak all dropped on the slope. The team members had to gather the noodles and beverages and pulled the half-dead yak up out of the snow.

On October 28, the yaks could not go on because the fodder had run out. The team members each had to carry 15 kg of materials and continue to hobble along on for 6-7 hours a day on the wild snow path over 5000 m above sea level. On October 31 afternoon, the 29-member rescue team finally arrived at the base camp to join the South Korean alpinist party. The Korean alpinists were overjoyed at the sight of the Chinese rescue team and greatly moved for their final rescue.