THE TRIPOLOGIST
everyone asks…
WHAT LESSONS CAN BE LEARNED FROM THE SNOWSTORMS THAT CAUSED MORE THAN 40 DEATHS IN NEPAL'S ANNAPURNA REGION?
Travel with an operator you can trust. Many trekkers on popular routes in Nepal save money by hiring unlicensed guides, who lack the equipment, the training and the skills to anticipate a problem, or to deal with it when it happens. The severe snowstorm that lashed the mountain on October 14 was caused by Cyclone Hudhud, which made landfall on the Indian mainland two days before. Autumn is the peak of Nepal's trekking season, and conditions are typically calm, but the cyclone had been tracked for several days and its path into the Himalayas was predicted. When trekkers left the guesthouse on the Annapurna Circuit early on the morning of October 14 to cross 5416-metre Thorong La pass, it was snowing heavily. Throughout that day the snowfalls and wind intensified, leaving trekkers and porters disoriented and suffering from hypothermia that took many lives, and causing an avalanche that resulted in more deaths. At least one trekking operator who was aware of the approaching storm stopped clients from proceeding into the area. If you're setting out on a remote area trek, an experienced guide familiar with the terrain and equipped with oxygen, appropriate medications, emergency survival gear and a satellite phone are essential.
Michael Gebicki
TRAVELLER.COM.AU
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