Bengal climber among 2 dead on Mt Everest; report says he ‘refused to descend’

Bengal climber among 2 dead on Mt Everest; report says he ‘refused to descend’

Two climbers-one from West Bengal, India and another from the Philippines-have died on Mount Everest in the past 48 hours, casting a pall over the current spring climbing season.

Subrata Ghosh, a 45-year-old climber from Ranaghat, West Bengal, lost his life while descending from the Everest summit on Thursday. According to expedition organisers Snowy Horizon Treks, Ghosh successfully reached the top with his Sherpa guide, Champal Tamang, but began showing signs of severe exhaustion and altitude sickness on the way down, The Himalayan Times reported.

Despite repeated pleas from his guide, Ghosh refused to continue the descent below the Hillary Step-a notorious rock face just short of the summit. Champal Tamang was ultimately forced to leave Ghosh and return alone to Camp IV, reporting the incident to authorities the next morning. Efforts are now underway to retrieve Ghosh’s body, PTI reported.

In a separate incident, 45-year-old Philipp II Santiago from the Philippines died at Camp IV, also known as the South Col, on Wednesday night. Santiago reportedly succumbed to exhaustion while resting in his tent before his planned summit push. He was also part of an international expedition managed by Snowy Horizon Treks, according to officials cited by news agency Reuters.

Subrata Ghosh was reportedly a member of a three-person team from West Bengal, representing the Mountaineering Association of Krishnanagar. While his teammate Rumpa Das successfully reached the summit on May 15, the third member, Asim Kumar Mondal, turned back from Camp IV and is safe. Ghosh’s refusal to descend, despite his deteriorating condition, has highlighted the critical importance of timely decision-making in Everest’s so-called “death zone,” where oxygen is scarce and the margin for error is razor-thin.

Nepal’s Department of Tourism has issued 459 permits for Everest this season and over 100 climbers and guides have already reached the summit in recent days. The deaths of Ghosh and Santiago serve as a sobering reminder of the risks that accompany every attempt to conquer the world’s highest mountain.