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Hikers have described encountering "extreme" conditions after an unseasonable snowstorm during one of China's most crowded festive periods trapped numerous of individuals on Mount Everest, sparking a massive rescue effort.

Evacuation Efforts In Progress

Officials in China reported that approximately 350 people had made their way down but at least 200 were still trapped at the Everest Scenic Area, located to the eastern side of the mountain, on the Tibet side of the border.

Crowds of visitors had traveled to the region for "Golden Week," an week-long festive break in China. However, Chinese authorities, who control the Tibetan Autonomous Region, said heavy snowfall had hit the area on Friday and Saturday night, trapping hundreds of individuals at tent sites at an altitude of more than 4,900 meters (16,000 feet).

"This was the harshest weather I've experienced in all my hiking adventures, undoubtedly," Dong Shuchang said on social media, detailing a "violent convective blizzard on the eastern slope" of Everest.

"Glancing upward in the late hours and noticed that the accumulation had almost buried the peak," shared a hiker on Xiaohongshu. "It was the initial instance I genuinely experienced the fear of being engulfed by snow."

Eyewitness Reports

One Chinese trekker said their party had been "too frightened to sleep" on that night as snow quickly piled up around their shelters, forcing them to remove it every 90 minutes. They chose to descend on the next day as the conditions worsened.

"During the descent, we encountered our guide’s parent who had searched for him. That's when we learned the storm was heavy in the valley as well; villagers, unable to contact their family on the mountain, were extremely worried."

The north and east side of Everest is more accessible than locations on the neighboring side of the border and draws large crowds of visitors for easier trekking, without summiting the peak.

Online Documentation

Images and footage shared on the internet showed tents buried in snow and lines of trekkers walking through deep drifts to get down the mountain.

"It was extremely thick, and the trail very slick. Trekkers often slipped – a few tumbled, some were jostled by pack animals," said one, who added that everyone made it down and were transported by bus.

Latest Developments

By Sunday afternoon, approximately 350 individuals had arrived in Qudang, a small town about 30 miles away from the Tibet-side starting point of Everest, "in good health," official sources reported.

At least 200 additional remained trapped but had been reached, the updates said. Local news stated that hundreds of emergency workers had gone up the mountain to help people and remove accumulation from obstructing the exit route.

Officials provided minimal updates or new details about the operation on the following day. It was also not clear if the storm had impacted anyone on the northern side of Everest, also in Tibet. The region is strictly regulated by the authorities, and media entry is limited. The conditions also seemed to have affected phone services, with calls to local businesses not connecting. A number of hikers said power was out in Qudang when they reached the town.

Seasonal Context

October is a busy period for the area, with typically calm and pleasant weather, but Chen Geshuang, among 18 participants of a hiking party that returned to Qudang, commented that the climate this year was "unusual."

"The guide said he had never encountered conditions like this in the fall. And it occurred all too suddenly."

The regional travel department said ticket sales and entry to the Everest Scenic Area were halted from Saturday.

Broader Effects

Adjacent nations were also hit by severe conditions. Torrential downpours caused landslides and flash floods that have blocked roads, washed away bridges, and killed at least 47 individuals since the start of the weekend in Nepal.