Aussie climber killed on Himalayan expedition

Aussie climber killed on Himalayan expedition

An Australian has been killed descending a peak near Mount Everest in eastern Nepal.

Michael Davis, from Newcastle, was climbing with a group of 15 people on Thursday when a falling rock severed his climbing ropes as he descended a peak on the 6812-metre Ama Dablam mountain in the Himalayas, according to Fairfax.

The 33-year old was on a five-week expedition with Top Himalaya Guides when the climbers were descending from the camp after a strong wind.

Sunset over Ama Dablam

“The mountaineer fell to his death after a huge rock damaged the ropes he was using to descend the mountain,” expedition organiser Tshering Pande Bhote said, according to the Himalayan Times.

“His body has already been airlifted to Kathmandu for post-mortem.”

Davies’ sister-in-law, Kobie Davis, told Fairfax a Norwegian doctor who was climbing with the group contacted the family.

“He said Michael had double safety ropes all connected,” she said.

“He kind of indicated the rock hit Michael as well as cutting the rope.

“He was there when it happened and accompanied his body back to Kathmandu.

“Once we announced it on Facebook, the family’s realised how many different circles of friends he had, because he was into so many different adventure activities.

“He was really widely travelled as well. For a while he was living in Guatemala volunteering at an orphanage. He went to Canada snowboarding and worked a season over there.”

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