This year’s busy climbing season follows two years of disasters that virtually emptied the mountain.
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Two Indian climbers went missing near the south summit point, which the climbers consider as the “death zone” on Mt Everest, since Saturday.
Bad weather on Mount Everest has prevented the retrieval of two bodies of climbers who died on mountain in the past week.
“They plan to bring her body to Camp II by late in the night”, said Mingma Sherpa, owner of Seven Summit Treks, adding that the same team would also try to retrieve Mr Arnold’s body.
The body of Eric Arnold of Rotterdam was flown from Everest directly to a hospital in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu. He died last Friday near South Col after showing signs of altitude sickness.
Ms Strydom’s mother, Maritha, praised the expedition leader and sherpas in an emotional Facebook post last night, writing: “Thank you, thank you, thank you Arnold Coster and all the unbelievable Sherpas, for risking your life’s to give me the greatest gift, my baby girl Marisa Elizabeth”.
Dutch climber Eric Arnold’s body was brought to Camp 2 at 21,000 feet, while Australian climber Maria Strydom’s body is at Camp 3 located at 23,620 feet.
Maria Strydom suffered severe altitude sickness while climbing Mount Everest.
Meanwhile, another team of Sherpa guides was heading to a spot called the Triangular Face, the final push toward the peak, to search for two other Indian climbers who went missing last weekend.
The spring climbing season generally ends in May after which the monsoon season brings bad weather that makes climbing the mountain impossible.
“Other climbers reported they might have spotted the bodies in the area”, Mountaineering Department official Gyanendra Shrestha said.
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Almost 400 climbers have scaled the 8,850-meter (29,035-foot) peak since May 11. Many had hoped for a safe season, after avalanche disasters left 19 people dead in 2015 and 16 Sherpa guides in 2014.
