Death in the HIMALAYA !!!

[yoni]

ATTENTION !!!
Trekking & climbing in the EVEREST , NEPAL !!!
Concerning serious safety problems , inadequate & damaged equipment .
While trekking & climbing with “Equator Expeditions” company in Nepal in April 2001 we encountered serious problems involving unprofessional staff and a lack of necessary safety measures .
The following are some examples :
1 . Dehydration due to an inadequate water supply .
2 . No first aid kit or means of rescue .
3 . No Walkie Talkies or other communication devices .
4 . poorly maintained ropes , tents & climbing gear .
5 . unskilled & unprofessional climbing guide .
Upon our return we discovered that a few weeks prior to our climb two other extremely hazardous incidents occurred , 1 of them ending in a fatality !
Judging from our experience , “Equator Expedition” should not be allowed to operate under any circumstances .
A WARNING TO ALL TRAVELLERS : please make safety your first concern , life is something money cannot buy . don’t be tempted by this company’s cheap deals .
Yours ,
Yoni Bick
&
Harel Shaham

[Andrées]

Death in jimalaya was allready published before in September, so i just copy, what i had written then:
As I have not been on this particulary expedition, I can not directly comment anything on Equator expeditions. But there is one thing wich should be learnd for every one who wants to climb (this includes also trecking peaks like island peak, pisang peak an others).
Climbing in the himalaya is always a potential dangerous thing to do as you are in high altitude (danger of altitude sickness) and rescue possibilitis are very little compared to western standards. It will normaly take ont to three days befor a helicopter can rescue you!
One should have this in mind when organising the trek and know that there is finaly only one who can take the responsability for your life and thats you yourself!
It is You who set the standard for the trecking agency. For example if you want to have walkie talkies with you you have to tell this the agency, they are normaly not used in Nepal.
You should discuss every item of the material and check it best in Kathmandu personaly with the agency before you start. Have a look to the ropes, the ice axes and ask that every tent ist erected so that you can check it. Inform you on altitude sicknes and check if the first aide kit is ok, This is a fare more important thing to do, than just agreeing on the price. When you are allready on the trek, your sirdar/guide has no possibility to change anything!

A lot of the problems could not have occured if Yoni and Harel would have checked the material already in Kathmandu.

An other important point to me is that you are also responsible for the porters and guides working for You! Therfore you should insist in advance that they are properly equiped and examine their equipement the same way, as the one used for yourself.

I know, that when you are planning a climbing trek you are excitet and eager to start and do not want to loose anymore time. Just allow you this two extra hours and have a wonderful trek!
Andrées

[Equator]

In response to, “Death in the himalayas”, Equator Expeditions is very concerned by the information given in this post. Equator Expeditions was founded in 1991 by professional guides with the goal of providing adventure enthusiasts an experience of a lifetime in the Himalayas with safety and proper instruction always being our number one priorities. In the years since, we have gained much experience and with the participation of many industry professionals, both Nepali and western, we have developed a high quality product that in which we take pride.

Well Mr Yoni Bick & Mr Harel Shaham from Israel did 6 days climbing course with us.
In the post it is mentioned that there were inadequate water supplies during the 6 day mountaineering course that we offered. We were very surprised upon hearing this. Our guides were not aware that this was a concern to these two clients. Water is always made available to clients and staff, as for summit day the water rations were the same as any other professional expedition would use and recommend.

It is also mentioned that there was no first aid kit or means of rescue. An extensive first aid kit is mandatory on all trips and provided to our guides by the company. This kit includes medicine proper to the mountain and high altitude environment along with the necessary field first aid dressing and equipment. There is a rescue plan if need should arise, and our guides and instructors are experienced in identifying problems and carrying out such rescues. On Lobuche East (6119m) the peak in question, a gamow bag was present and ready at base camp in case it was needed. Our company is also insured by for helicopter rescues by Neco insurance in case it is needed.

As for walkie talkies or other forms of communications such as satellite phones, were not used on this ascent because help and permanent communication is accessible within reasonable distance.

It is mentioned that the gear was of poor condition. Equator Expeditions has put a lot of effort in purchasing quality equipment from around the world according to industry standards. This equipment is fixed or replaced when no longer safe or in good working order.

The fifth point to this post refers to the skills and professionalism of our guides. We work very hard at finding and training good guides for our trips and courses. The leader of this particular trip had been to Lobuche East 24 times prior to this trip and has guided and summited 18 significant peaks throughout the Himalayas. He has also worked for Everest expeditions reaching the south col. twice and is known for his hard work and talent. He has been with our company for 3 years and he has always received very good and positive feedback from our clients. Clients that participated in the Lobuche East mountaineering course, when asked about the performance of the climbing team made the following comments.

“All excellent. I cannot praise them enough. They showed a very high level knowledge, enthusiasm and professionalism.” Ciaran Kinney

“They were all very good. They are great teachers and guides.” Jeff Rose

“Fantastic, they were excellent guides, all staff was very friendly and professional” Michael Skowronski

“They were very competent. They made every effort to see we were comfortable” Adam Ordin

18 clients climbed with us on the mountaineering course the past season and all but the two authors of the previous post said they would climb with us again.

We are very concerned about the mention that our company was involved in “two extremely hazardous incidents, one of them resulting in death”. These rumors are not true and can be verified with the Nepal Mountaineering Association the governing body for mountaineering. Still we must understand that mountaineering like many other adventure activities involves risks. As professionals we put alot of effort in keeping the levels of risk to a minimum but it is not possible to eliminate it.


Equator Expeditions is very sorry if there was any inconvenience but we believe there was a misunderstanding and we will gladly answer to any questions that you may have. You may contact us via email at equator@mos.com.np or visit our office in Thamel (next to the pilgrim bookshop), Kathmandu. Thank you.