The last victim was 62 years of age, a US-American who died while descending from the 8848 metre-high summit of Mount Everest. Shortly before his death, the dream of the passionate mountain climber fulfilled had: once, on the highest peak of the earth. But in the end it was not he who defeated the mountain – the mountain defeated him. Chris Kulish died in the Southeast-altitude Camp just below the summit.
His death marks a sad climax in this year’s season on Everest. With him, eleven people have died so far in the attempt one of the 8000m mountains in the Himalaya to climb. More than twice as many as in the season of 2018, in which five people lost their lives.
New Drama in the Himalayas
Death during the descent: American dies on Mount Everest
In the past week, an image for headlines, which originated in the vicinity of the Mount Everest summit in good weather provided. It shows dozens of climbers on the way to the summit: they were crowding the narrow path and form a kind of queue. Experts suggest that this year’s deaths could be related to the masses of people on Mount Everest. It long would be the waiting times that people spend too much time in the dangerous “death zone”.
But what is it exactly? And why the heights of the Himalayas are so risky for the people?
Treacherous Altitude Sickness
Elevations from approximately 2000 to 2500 meters mean for the human body a lot of Stress. With increasing altitude the ambient air pressure as well as oxygen content of the air decrease. The body initially attempts to compensate for this and increases breathing and heart rate. The organs are not supplied sufficiently with oxygen, the altitude sickness. Sufferers complain of headaches, dizziness, and Nausea. You feel sick, have no appetite, can’t sleep or need to vomit. Hands and feet can swell. Altitude sickness occurs especially during fast ascents, because the body sufficient time to adjust to the new realities.
The symptoms of mountain sickness are usually within one to two days. Those who ignore the symptoms and continue to ascend, you risk edema a life – threatening high-altitude cerebral or height of the lung. Depending on where the liquid accumulates, suffering Ill choke on disorders of consciousness, or threaten to.
The danger in the “death zone”
A human body can adapt up to a height of 5000 meters. Experts talk of acclimatization. “Above 5500 meters, a complete adaptation to the altitude or lack of oxygen is not possible any more, instead there is a continuous degradation of the physical and mental capacity,” writes the “German society for mountain and expedition medicine”. “This height brand is, therefore, the upper limit of a human the duration of colonization, and at the same time, the highest yet meaningful base camp altitude for expedition climbers.”
Height zones-an Overview
Source: German society for mountain and expedition medicine e. V.
From a height of 7500 meters is the death zone, in which the body can no longer regenerate begins. It is an “acute forces of decay threatens to” warn the expedition medic. Accordingly, short the residence should be in this Zone.
Altitude sickness prevention
How fast a body adjusts to new heights, differs from individual to individual and also depends on the physical Fitness. Climbers should slowly rise to the possibility of not more than 300 to 500 meters of the day, and a deep sleep altitude select (“climb high – sleep low”). Who provides symptoms of altitude sickness in themselves, should not rise higher, but his body time to adapt to new circumstances (“don’t go up until sympoms go down”). The complaints worsen, an immediate descent is recommended.
Sources: Denver Post / technicians health insurance Fund and the German society for mountain and expedition medicine e. V.
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