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Emergency crews have escorted all of the last adventurers near the eastern slopes of Mount Everest in Tibet to security, including hundreds of native guides and livestock handlers, officials reported. This concludes one of the biggest rescue and recovery operations ever seen in the region.

Large-Scale Rescue Operation Completed

Numerous of trekkers were found themselves stuck in heavy snow over the recent weekend in the isolated Karma valley, after an unexpectedly fierce blizzard dumped heavy snowfall across the territory.

Snow kept coming down all day Saturday in the valley, which rests at an typical altitude of 4,200 meters (13,800 feet). By Sunday, emergency teams had guided approximately 350 hikers to a safe zone.

Earlier reports had estimated that the last group of roughly 200 hikers were anticipated to reach their destination by Tuesday.

In total, 580 mountaineers, coupled with more than 300 escorts, animal handlers, and other crew members were rescued, according to authoritative reports released on Tuesday late in the day.

Survivors Describe Severe Situations

One from China hiker shared how their group had been “too anxious to sleep” on Saturday, as snow rapidly accumulated around their tents, obliging them to remove it every 90 minutes. They decided to descend on Sunday as the situation became more severe.

“On the way, we came across our guide’s father, who had ventured for him. That’s when we found out the snow was deep in the valley, too; community members, unable to contact their children on the mountain, were deeply concerned.”

Climbing Schedules Thwarted

The snowstorm also disrupted the goals of climbers escorted by a American mountaineering company to reach the top of Cho Oyu, an 8,188-meter (26,864-foot) peak on the frontier between China and Nepal.

Tourism Increase in the Region

Karma valley was first explored by international explorers a long time ago. In the past few years, with the development of the Everest region in Tibet as a prominent visitor destination, the area has attracted an increasing number of visitors. More than 540,000 sightseers visited the Everest region last year, setting a unprecedented number.

Region Remains Off-Limits

The Everest region is still temporarily inaccessible to the visitors, covering the Karma and Rongshar valleys, as well as Cho Oyu.

Broader Effect

The heavy snowfall over the weekend also affected numerous of hikers in other parts of western China, including Xinjiang, Qinghai, and Gansu. Sadly, at least one individual lost their life, due to a combination of hypothermia and altitude sickness.

Unusual Conditions

October is typically a peak season for the area, with typically clear and moderate weather, but one trekker of an 18-person expedition team that made it back to Qudang remarked that the weather this year was “unusual.”