2 foreigners die in 1 week climbing Nepal’s ‘Himalayan Matterhorn’

Two mountaineers, one French and one South Korean, have died in Nepal after separate expeditions to the Ama Dablam mountain in the Himalayas, hiking officials said on Monday. Hugo Lucio Colonia Lazaro, 65, from France, was hit on the head by a falling piece of ice and was evacuated to Kathmandu by helicopter last week, said Subash Shrestha of the Himalayan Vision Treks and Expedition company. Lazaro then died in hospital on Friday. South Korean Park Hong-khy, 66, died on Sunday while climbing the mountain. He was climbing with five others when he collapsed, said Homnath Bhattarai of the J’Vill Nepal Treks company. The 6,814 metre (22,360 foot) high Ama Dablam mountain in the Solukhumbu area is a small but technically difficult peak to climb. Popular among hikers to Mount Everest Base Camp, it is also known as the “Matterhorn of the Himalayas” because of its soaring ridges and steep face. Nepal issued 400 permits to climb Ama Dablam for the current autumn climbing season that ends next month. The country has issued a total of 1,323 climbing permits for the season. Trekking and mountain climbing are a key source of employment and income for the impoverished country tucked between China and India. In August, Nepal waived climbing fees for 97 mountains to promote lesser-known peaks. “We are seeing more interest in mountains below 8,000 metres (26,200 feet),” said Himal Gautam, chief of the mountaineering section at Nepal’s tourism department. “Gradually, we’re promoting new regions, so that as interest increases, the infrastructure and manpower needed to support them can develop.” A South Korean hiker died early this month after climbing Mera Peak, a trekking mountain in the same region. Additional reporting by Agence France-Presse