#trending: 2 Mount Everest climbers rescued in separate incidents slammed for not thanking Sherpas who saved them
Ngima Tashi Sherpa walking as he carries a Malaysian climber while rescuing him from the death zone above camp four at Everest, Nepal, on May 18, 2023 in this screengrab obtained from a handout video.
SINGAPORE — Two climbers who were recently rescued from the jaws of death on Mount Everest in separate incidents have faced backlash from the online community after they failed to show gratitude to the men who saved them.
In one incident, a female climber from China was slammed for allegedly refusing to pay a Sherpa guide the US$10,000 (S$13,437) rescue fee that had been promised to him after he saved her life.
Separately, a Malaysian mountaineer was accused of being ungrateful after he thanked his sponsors in a number of social media posts instead of the Sherpa guide who rescued him.
PAID RESCUER LESS THAN HALF OF PROMISED FEE
Hong Kong daily South China Morning Post reported that the 50-year-old woman, identified only as Liu from Hunan province in China, successfully reached Mount Everest’s peak and was descending the mountain in Nepal when she experienced health problems.
She was found unconscious at 8,500m above sea level by an unidentified Sherpa guide who was escorting fellow Chinese climber Fan Jiangtao to the summit on the evening of May 18.
Aware that he would be abandoning his dream of reaching the summit, Mr Fan agreed to help his guide save the woman.
Unfortunately, the two men reportedly only managed to move Ms Liu about 200m before they reached their physical limit due to the extreme conditions.
Mr Fan then set out alone to seek help and crossed paths with Xie Ruxiang, a fellow Hunan Provincial Mountain Climbing Association member who agreed to help with the rescue. However, Mr Xie’s Sherpa guide was initially reluctant to help.
This prompted Mr Xie to offer him a reward of US$10,000, to which he agreed. It is not clear if Ms Liu knew about the offer then, given her condition.
Together, the men carried Ms Liu to safety — Mr Xie's Sherpa guide hauled the woman on his back, while Mr Fan and Mr Xie took turns in raising her legs to promote blood flow.
They eventually reached a base camp where Ms Liu was treated for several days until she recovered.
When the Sherpa guide later asked the two men about the rescue fee that had been promised to him, Mr Fan revealed that Ms Liu refused to pay the full amount.
“Each of us paid the guide tips of US$1,800 (S$2,418), and she said she would pay US$1,500. As for the rescue fee of US$10,000, Ms Liu said she would only pay US$4,000,” Mr Fan claimed.
He lamented that he had been preparing to climb Mount Everest for 40 days and spent 400,000 yuan (S$75,275) on reaching the goal.
"I was unwilling to give up on my plan to reach the peak. Not only that, I also had to pay the rescue fee. I don’t know what to say. I am just wondering why she is reluctant to pay (the full sum)," he said.
“Mr Xie and I feel bad about this incident. So far, she has not even said ‘thank you’ to us. She is so ungrateful! We don’t want to have anything to do with her from now on.”
The incident between Ms Liu and her rescuers has captured national attention in China, garnering more than 300 million views on social media platform Weibo alone.
Many people condemned Ms Liu for her alleged behaviour, even though it is unclear if she agreed to the US$10,000 promised to the Sherpa by Mr Xie in the first place and has not commented on the incident to give her side of the story.
One person wrote: “We should send her back to the mountain slope.”
Another user said: “Does she have a conscience? Is her life not worth US$10,000?”
Someone raised a point about the potential negative consequence of such behaviour: “After this saga, will future climbers save or help others on Mount Everest? Probably not. This woman has quashed the chances to live for other climbers who may get into trouble while climbing Everest.”
Following the backlash, Mr Xie and Mr Fan stepped in to ask the public not to harass Ms Liu.
“Saving her was our choice and expressing gratitude is hers. These are two separate things,” Mr Xie said. “We are not her and don’t understand what she felt. Let’s just show tolerance.”
Mr Fan agreed: “We’ve saved her, so we hope she can continue to live well. We should stop online attacks and humiliation.”
MALAYSIAN CLIMBER SNUBS SHERPA WHO SAVED HIS LIFE
In a similar incident, a mountain climber from Malaysia has been accused of snubbing a Sherpa who saved his life.
Mr Ravichandran Tharumalingam narrowly survived after a Nepali Sherpa guide, Mr Gelje Sherpa, hauled him down from below the summit of Mount Everest in a "very rare" high altitude rescue.
The rescue was captured in a video, which became viral and made global headlines in late May.
Upon his return to Malaysia, Mr Ravichandran, 58, went on national television in early June to share his survival story, with no mention of his 30-year-old saviour.
Mr Ravichandran also went on Instagram and Facebook to talk about his recovery with no acknowledgements of Mr Gelje, thanking his sponsors and insurance provider instead for his survival.
“I am alive today, because I had the best and dedicated Partners — The 14th peaks Expedition Co and Global Rescue Ins,” he said on June 3 in an Instagram post.
Online users began slamming the Malaysian climber for omitting Mr Gelje in his rescue story.
One Instagram user commented on his post: “The craziest thing is (that there is) no gratitude. It may have been weeks ago but you're only able to say these things because of his actions. He carried you (for six hours) and no post, for real?”
Another person wrote: “So much for being grateful to the person for whom if he hadn't rescued you, you wouldn't be alive to be on TV and brag about your so-called conquest.”
Mr Ravichandran was later accused of blocking Mr Gelje on Instagram and removing negative comments.
The guide then shared an Instagram post from an outraged online users, which confirmed that Mr Ravichandran had blocked him.
One Instagram user wrote on Mr Gelje’s post. “We Malaysians come here to say a biggest thank you on behalf (of) the human that blocked you. May you always be blessed by God.”
Mr Ravichandran was then seen to have unblocked Mr Gelje on June 5 and acknowledged him in an appreciation post dedicated to the Sherpas who rescued him.
Mr Geljie responded to the post saying: “Thank you, hope you are recovering well".
Asked by The New York Times about the aftermath of the incident, Mr Ravichandran sent a link to an Instagram video shared by Tashi Lakpa Sherpa, the leader of his Everest expedition and the founder of 14 Peaks Expedition.
In the video, which Tashi Lakpa Sherpa posted on June 6, he says that Mr Ravichandran had called him from the hospital in Nepal and thanked him.
Mr Tashi Lakpa Sherpa also told The New York Times: “Ravi has managed Sherpa bonus payment for the rescue person involved and he paid all the expenditure of the oxygen used in the operation.
“After his recovery, he was very thankful to our company and all the Sherpa who were involved in the rescue mission.”
In the midst of the controversy, many online users have shown overwhelming support to Mr Gelje and commended him on his brave efforts in saving Mr Ravichandran.
On May 18, Mr Gelje had risked his life carrying Mr Ravichandran for six hours down Mount Everest’s steep slopes over a distance of about 600m.
Mr Ravichandran was discovered clinging to a rope and shivering from extreme cold in the area called the "death zone".
The Sherpa had convinced the climber he was guiding to give up their summit attempt and help rescue Mr Ravichandran, since saving another life is “more important than praying at the monastery”, Reuters reported.
DEADLIEST CLIMBING SEASON IN RECENT YEARS
There have been 12 confirmed deaths on Mount Everest during this year’s spring climbing season between March and May, British broadcaster BBC reported. Another five are missing and presumed dead.
One of those reported missing was Singaporean climber Shrinivas Sainis Dattatraya who left for the Himalayan mountain on April 1.
Mr Shrinivas had successfully summited on May 19 but informed his wife via a message from his satellite phone that he had been afflicted with high-altitude cerebral oedema, or swelling of the brain.
The 39-year-old did not make it down the mountain although two Sherpas and another climber in his group did.
Despite search-and-rescue efforts, Mr Shrinivas could not be found. This was confirmed by his wife, Madam Sushma Soma, on May 27.
The number of Mount Everest deaths now exceeds the 11 lives lost in 2019, when a viral image of a huge line forming to reach the peak highlighted the overcrowding on the scenic but dangerous mountain.
The high number of fatalities has deepened concerns over overcrowding and the impact of climate change on the mountain, as Nepal continues to issue a record number of climbing permits this year.
At least 478 permits have been granted to foreign clients so far, with an estimated 600 climbers and guides reaching the top, Aljazeera news channel reported.
