원정 개요

CBC 14/04 4800m
IC 17/04 5400m
ABC 18/04 5700m
C1 27/04 6400m
HPt 28/04 7200m by all members and all 5 Sherpas.

When the team reached high point, they were on their second rotation. They did not intend to sleep at C2, but only touch it, which they did. They descended to ABC on 28/04, and on 29/04 they went to Tingri to rest, apart from Trump and the Weingartls, who stayed at ABC.

On 29/04, the Sherpas were intending to continue fixing the rope above C2. Mark Trump was going up with them to set up his C2. About 20m below C2, Phujung Bhote slipped and fell down for about 20 metres and then slipped into a crevasse. The other four Sherpas fixed some rope to abseil down to Phujung, but only found him dead.

On 29/04, expedition leader Szwed who was in Tingri with his team at the time, found out via the liaison officer that Phujung was killed in an accident. On 30/04 Szwed informed his team. On 30/04 liaison officer went back to Cho Oyu ABC to deal with the death and Szwed stayed in Tingri to coordinate the follow-up actions. After he received weather forecast from Innsbruck, which forecast unfavorable weather for summit push until 16 May, he decided to abandon climb. On 02/05 Szwed returned to ABC and on 03/05 the rest of the team joined him there. The Sherpas went up to C1 and C2 to bring the stuff down on 02/05 and team left BC on 05/05.

On 30/04, the two climbing Sherpas (Ang Dawa and Geli Sherpa) went back up to retrieve the body, but they did not have the equipment or strength to haul him out of the crevasse from 50 metres. They fixated Phujung’s body to the wall of the crevasse to leave him there in case somebody will come and get his body.

Climb abandoned on 02/05 due to bad weather and fatal accident

Fixed rope: 1800m

Oxygen: Taken and not used

Sherpa in fatal accident:
Phujung Bhote, Hatiya-1, Makalu-Barun, 31/05/1979