Repeating some stats from a piece in The Smithsonian, it was recently reported that there are more than 200 dead bodies on Mt. Everest. In response to the article, Alan Arnette researched the routes in which climbers died and their cause of death (click here for the blog post).
Of note (alarm?) is 70 climbers have died on Mt. Everest in the last ten years. It is interesting – to me at least – that avalanches were responsible for only six deaths which corresponds to 8.6% of the total. Altitude was the number one cause at 16 deaths followed by falls at 14, exhaustion at 11, heart attacks / strokes at 5, crevasse falls at 4 and exposure at 4.
It is often reported – as is the case here – that altitude, exhaustion and exposure kills climbers. In my view, it is not so much that these are the causes of death as it is that climbers’ unpreparedness for these conditions were the cause. These are risks inherent to high altitude mountaineering and ought to be expected by the prepared climber.
Avalanches, crevasse falls, and falling rock and ice are also inherent risks and should be regarded as foreseeable in the sense that climbers ought to know that it is possible or even probable they will encounter these hazards.
The difference is that the altitude, fatigue and extreme temperatures are a certainty whereas avalanches and falls are a possibility.
What does this mean? Re. altitude, acclimatize properly. Climb high, sleep low. Don’t go too high too fast. Re. exhaustion, train hard. Be strong. Not just gym strong but mountain strong. They’re different. This takes care of 38.6% or 27 of the 70 deaths. Re. exposure, while there is merit to the ‘climb light – climb fast’ maxim, the downside becomes obvious when climbers are confronted with an unexpected bivy. Add it to the mix and these three human factor hazards or unsafe acts are responsible for 44.3% of Mt. Everest deaths while environmental hazards or unsafe conditions (i.e. objective hazards) were the cause of the remaining 55.7% of deaths.
What can we take from the data? We can “control” – before we even set foot in the mountains – almost half of the risks which kill climbers and can in effect help stack the deck in our favour. On the big peaks, we need every advantage we can get.