Nepal

Foreign climber who perished on Mt Everest is Dutch

Foreign climber who perished on Mt Everest is Dutch

By Rajan Pokhrel

Eric Arnold from the Netherlands had survived last year's avalanche in the Everest region. Photo: Facebook/ Eric Arnold

KATHMANDU: The foreign climber, who died on the Mt Everest after suffering from altitude-related sickness on Friday night, has been identified as Eric Arnold from the Netherlands, according to Pemba Sherpa, the manager of Seven Summit Treks. A survivor of the last year's deadly avalanche on the Mt Everest, the 36-year-old Dutch successfully stood atop the world's highest peak yesterday. It was his fifth attempt to conquer the Mt Everest. He, however, perished at the Camp IV last night while descending to the lower camps. Besides altitude-related sickness, Arnold had suffered from frostbite on fingers and eyes also. 'We're trying our best to bring the dead body to Camp II from where a chopper could airlift it to Kathmandu,' Sherpa added. Arnold was one among a very few Dutch climbers who succeeded in climbing the Mt Everest. He hailed from Rotterdam. 'Mountaineer Eric Arnold reached summit of Mount Everest at fifth attempt,' reads a tweet posted along with his photograph on his account yesterday morning.

Bergbeklimmer Eric Arnold bereikt top Mount Everest bij vijfde poging https://t.co/oeswLrfXyd pic.twitter.com/991NvMg6Op

— Eric Arnold (@EricArnold8850) May 20, 2016 In 2013, he had sustained a severe injury following a skater cut through his Achilles' tendon. He was forced to abandon his Everest bid due to a huge avalanche that destroyed a part of the ascent route killing sixteen mountaineering support staff in 2014, according to his personal website (ericarnold.nl). Arnold returned to Nepal last year for another expedition. He barely survived after the April 25 earthquake caused gigantic avalanches on Mt Everest. In his website, Arnold identified himself as a professional adventurer, athlete and inspirational speaker. On May 15, he had posted a tweet apparently from the Everest base camp. 'Off we go !!! Sunday night 02 o'clock departure. Mon - Tues C2 C2 C3 Wed- Thu - C4 Friday top !!,' the tweet written in Dutch reads.
His tweet on Friday afternoon (May 19), however, suggested that Arnold witnessed some issues with the oxygen flow and suffered from redness --gone red--at the altitude of 7950 metres.

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