A young high-altitude worker died on Mount Everest overnight, marking the third fatality on the world’s highest peak during the 2026 spring climbing season.
According to the Himalaya Times, Phurba Gyalzen Sherpa, 21, of Thame, Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality-5, Solukhumbu, fell into a crevasse near Camp III and died on the spot. According to Everest Live, the high altitude worker fell while climbing unclipped at the top of the Lhotse face.
Bijay Ghimire Bishwakarma, a veteran climbe from Solu Dudhkunda Municipality, Solukhumb, died from a suspected cardiac arrest in the Khumbu Icefall on May 10th while climbing up from Base Camp, and 52-year-old Lakpa Dendi Sherpa died on May 4th after a fall while hiking from Gorakshep to Everest Base Camp.
Despite the grim news, rope fixing operations continued Monday in what base camp correspondent Ben Ays described as mediocre weather. More than a dozen rope fixers are currently pushing toward the summit. Mingma Sherpa of Imagine Nepal posted on social media that his team and climbers from Elite Expeditions were coordinating a joint push to the top, though Ays cast some doubt on the framing of that claim while acknowledging progress was being made.
At Camp 2, Canadian adventurer Shauna Burke reported heavy logistical activity. Sherpas are moving loads of oxygen cylinders, tents, and equipment upward from base camp through Camp 2 to Camp 3 and beyond. A handful of teams are still completing their acclimatization rotations to Camp 3, while most others have descended to base camp and are waiting for a summit weather window.
The Everest climbing season remains active, dangerous, and in full motion. Our deepest condolences are with the friends, family, and loved ones of the deceased at this time.
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