Indian climber dies after falling sick at Everest base camp

Suzanne Leopoldina Jesus, a 59-year-old Indian mountaineer, died at the base camp of Mount Everest in Nepal on Thursday, PTI reported. She wanted to become Asia's first woman on a pacemaker to scale the world's highest peak. According to Yuvaraj Khatiwada, Director at the Tourism Department of Nepal, Jesus faced health difficulties during the acclimatization exercises, following which she was rushed to the hospital.

Dendi Sherpa, Chairman of Glacier Himalayan Trek and the expedition organizer, told PTI that Jesus was asked to abandon her mission five days ago after failing to maintain a normal speed during acclimatization exercises. However, she refused the advice and carried on climbing. Sherpa added that the climber was forcibly airlifted to Lukla town for treatment.

Reportedly, it took Jesus five hours to cross a distance during exercises, which climbers can usually cross in 15-20 minutes. Her dead body was flown to Kathmandu on Thursday and taken to a hospital for postmortem. Jesus's family members were expected to arrive in Kathmandu by Friday. Notably, the death count on Mount Everest this season has reached eight.