원정 개요

Brasg, Ronald, Fouche and Le Roux left BC 17 May: Fouche had to get back to business, Le Roux's wife said he was needed at home and Ronald spent night at C1 in raging storm and had enough and Brasg had been in BC long enough and Horn volunteered to be BC manager in his place.

C3 establish by Woodall, O'Dowd and 4 Sherpas (only other climber left by 23 May was Johnstone and he went back from C1 feeling he'd reached limit of his capabilities, so no support available from below): all climbers up together. 24th left C3 at 2:30 am Nepal time: Woodall, O'Dowd and 3 Sherpas (1 Sherpa stayed in C3) plus a younger Tibetan (Ci Luo from CTMA) wanted to get to top. Soon after left C3 3 Uzbeks caught up with South Africans and made a party of 9. Reached North Ridge at dawn and Uzbeks paused while and then 6 kept on up Ridge reached First Step and near bottom found body of woman which moaned and moved in spasms and could say only "don't leave me alone" and "why are you doing this to me" and "I am an American." She was lying in horrible position, clipped in to fixed rope which kept her waist up while her head and feet down. O'Dowd, Woodall and Jangbu stayed with her an hour, moved her around to and put her into better position while Sherpa put her hot drink to her lips. Woodall tried to get her to come to attention but eyes open but not seeing - this was at 5:15 to 6:15 am - realized she hopeless: her speech like auto motor with 3 phrases. Not sure who she was. O'Dowd "very shaken" and asked Ian if he would come down with her and he agreed. Woodall asked for one Sherpa to go with them while other 2 Sherpas chose to go to top and did with Tibetan (Ci Luo), about 10:15 am. Woodall, O'Dowd and [Pemba Tenji] Sherpa with them to C1 while summiters to ABC same day. No one was in C3 when came through but numerous others came up passed them on their way to top.

31 May 98 - Uzbek member Sokolov (by telephone): South African summit party of 5 came to First Step and 2 members went down immediately "full of feeling" at seeing Francys Arsentiev and returned to C3 at 9:00 am Chinese time. They took "no action" at C3 about Francys and this was "terrible." 2 South African Sherpas before proceeding on to summit gave her water, he thinks, and put her arms inside her sleeves and her gloves on her hands; when these two Sherpa summiters descended to her (at 2:30 pm Chinese time) she was dead.

26 May 98 - Capetown journalist Ken Vernon by telephone: members Brasg, Fouche, Le Roux and Ronald resigned from expedition 18 May and left BC about 18-19 May because Woodall "lied to them" and "verbally abused them."

Oxygen used:
2 Sherpas from 7900m
2 members from 7900m
2 Sherpas from 8300m
1 Tibetan from 8300m or lower