Photo Credit: Photo via Flickr Under the Creative Commons License
Standing 29,029 feet tall, Mount Everest is not only the tallest mountain in the world but also one of the deadliest.
Today in 2014, 16 people are killed in a avalanche on Mt. Everest, The 16 dead are Native Nepali guides known as Sherpas, notorious for helping foreigners climb the mountain. The tragedy struck around 6:30 a.m. while the Sherpas were hauling loads of gear for commercial climbers. The accident opened up debates, that had been closed, about the risks Sherpas take for their normally thankless job. This event doubles the previous total for a single day, when eight climbers got caught in a storm and died in 1996. Out of respect for their fallen brothers, the Sherpas boycotted the remainder the climbing season. This in turn forced many commercial expeditions relying on the Sherpas guidance to turn back.
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