On 9 September 1974, the West Ridge Direct on
Mount Everest
Mount Everest (), known locally as Sagarmatha in Nepal and Qomolangma in Tibet, is Earth's highest mountain above sea level. It lies in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas and marks part of the China–Nepal border at it ...
was attempted by a
French
French may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France
** French people, a nation and ethnic group
** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices
Arts and media
* The French (band), ...
expedition. It resulted in the deaths of six climbers in an
avalanche
An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a Grade (slope), slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be triggered spontaneously, by factors such as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, othe ...
on the way to the summit. These deaths took the total number of fatalities on the mountain to 36.
The team consisted of:
*
Gérard Devouassoux
* Claude Ancey (survived)
* Lhakpa (
Sherpa
SHERPA (Securing a Hybrid Environment for Research Preservation and Access) is an organisation originally set up in 2002 to run and manage the SHERPA Project.
History
SHERPA began as an endeavour to support the establishment of a number of open ...
)
* Sanu Wongal (Sherpa)
* Pemba Dorje (Sherpa)
* Nawang Lutuk (Sherpa)
* Nima Wangchu (Sherpa)
In comparison, six Sherpas died on 5 April 1970 due to an avalanche in the
Khumbu Icefall
The Khumbu Icefall is located at the head of the Khumbu Glacier and the foot of the Western Cwm. It lies at an elevation of on the Nepali slopes of Mount Everest, not far above Base Camp and southwest of the summit. The icefall is regarded as o ...
(see
1970 Mount Everest disaster).
Other bad years were 1982 and 1996, although none of these years claimed as many lives as were lost in the avalanches of
2014
The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...
and
2015
2015 was designated by the United Nations as:
* International Year of Light
* International Year of Soil __TOC__
Events
January
* January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
.
See also
*
1970 Mount Everest disaster
*
List of 20th-century summiters of Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's list of highest mountains, highest mountain at and thus a particularly desirable peak for mountaineers. This is a list of people who reached the summit of Mount Everest in the 20th century. Overall about 1,383 peop ...
*
List of deaths on the Eight Thousanders
*
List of people who died climbing Mount Everest
Over 340 people have died attempting to reach—or return from—the summit of Mount Everest which, at , is Earth's highest mountain and a particularly desirable peak for mountaineers. This makes it the mountain with the most deaths, although i ...
*
List of Mount Everest expeditions
This is a list of notable expedition climbing attempts on Mount Everest. These mountaineering expeditions were for a variety of purposes, including geographic exploration, sport, science, awareness raising, and fundraising.
There have been man ...
References
External links
Broadcast of the National Institute of Audiovisuel
{{Mount Everest
1974
Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...
1970s avalanches
Expeditions from France
Mountaineering disasters
Avalanches in Nepal
September 1974 in Asia
1974 disasters in Nepal
France–Nepal relations
Gerard Devouassoux