A Nepali guide left behind from his group during a descent from the peak of Mount Everest survived six days in some of the harshest conditions on Earth. Hillary Dawa, “Dawa Sherpa,” admits in an interview with BBC Nepali that he thought he would die on the mountain.
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Dawa Sherpa, 52, was last seen by other members of his mountaineering party on May 29, when he sat down to take a rest above Everest Camp 3. He told news outlets that he ran out of oxygen (Camp 3 is at 23,163 feet), and some versions of the story suggest he was forced to stay behind.
[RELATED: Two Mountaineers Die During Their Mount Everest Descent]
Though he had no food, fresh water, or supplemental oxygen, BBC reports that Dawa Sherpa survived by chewing ice and eating small pieces of chocolate he found in his pockets. He slowly scooted down the mountain, eventually falling into a crevasse near Camp 1. He spent two days stuck in the crevasse, eventually figuring out how to get himself out.
A clean-up crew eventually saw Dawa Sherpa near the Khumbu Icefall and helped him. Medical professionals are treating the injured sherpa for frostbite, dehydration, and some other relatively minor injuries.
This situation is evolving, and details may change.
Header stock image by DanielPrudek/Getty Images
