The Death Toll on Shishapangma Has Risen to Four
This article originally appeared on Outside
The climbing community is mourning the victims of last week's deadly disaster on 26,335-foot Shishapangma.
On Saturday, October 7, two avalanches swept down the mountain near the summit and buried multiple climbers. Rescuers recovered the bodies of American Anna Gutu and Mingmar Sherpa of Nepal, after the slides, but two others--American Gina Rzucidlo and Nepali guide Tenjen Lama Sherpa--were missing.
According to multiple reports, Gutu, 32, and Rzucidlo, 45, were both attempting to be the first American woman to ascend all 14 peaks above 8,000 meters. Tenjen Lama Sherpa was guiding Rzucidlo, while Mingmar Sherpa was leading Gutu.
Rescuers attempted to find Rzucidlo and Tenjen Lama that afternoon, and sources told Outside that Nepali guide Mingma G of expedition company Imagine Nepal fell during the attempt and suffered serious injuries. Angela Benevides of Explorersweb reported that he slid approximately 500 feet down the face of the mountain and struck a rock, and later required resuscitation.
On Monday, October 9, Chinese officials ended the rescue attempt and declared the two missing climbers dead, bringing the official death toll to four. The news was first published on Facebook by Gina Rzucidlo's sister, Christy Rzucidlo. "The Rzucidlo family wants to share that Chinese authorities have declared my sister Gina and her Sherpa Tenjen Lama as deceased," she wrote. "China has halted all activity on Mount Shishapangma due to unsafe snow conditions and has closed the mountain for the season. Requests for search by helicopter from Nepal have been declined by the Chinese government."
A Chinese state-run news agency then confirmed that "all climbing activities have been suspended" on the peak on Tuesday, October 10. According to the agency, 19 rescue personnel had participated in a search for the two missing climbers.
The disaster prompted some criticism of the climbing methods on Shishapangma. Climbers and guides told Benevides that Gutu and Rzucidlo were racing each other to reach the summit at the time of the avalanches. Some sources said they believed the competition between the two had ratcheted up the danger on the mountain.
"The lesson, while not new, is that the death zone is no place for competition," an American climber named Tracee Metcalfe told the site.
News of China's decision to suspend the search spread quickly across social media, with climbers and guides offering condolences to families and friends. British-Nepali climbing company Elite Exped wrote a lengthy tribute to Gutu and Mingmar Sherpa on its site--Gutu had climbed all 14 peaks with the climbing company in 2023. "Anna and Mingmar, there will never be adequate words to describe what you meant to us all and how heavy your loss is to the entire mountain community and Elite Exped family," the company wrote. "We are shocked and devastated--we cannot believe you are not here with us. Your memory and legacy will be one of greatness and will stay with us in our hearts forever."
Multiple individuals posted heartfelt notes to Tenjen Lama, 35, who in 2023 became a celebrity within the circle of Himalayan mountaineers for setting a new speed record for climbing the 14 above 8,000 meters. Tenjen Lama and Norwegian climber Kristin Harila completed the expedition in just 92 days. On Tuesday, Harila penned a remembrance of Tenjen Lama on her Facebook page.
"On the mountains, you were so confident, so knowledgeable," Harila wrote. "You moved in unity with the mountains. You were home, and you so kindly invited me in."
In a lengthy Instagram post, Tenjen Lama's employer, Seven Summit Treks, referenced his "indomitable spirit."
"His mountaineering legacy will forever shine brightly, and his memory will be etched in our hearts," the company wrote.
Friends and family of Rzucidlo, 45, also posted updates online and eulogized her to local and national media. "Gina was just an amazing person," her mother, Susan Rzucidlo, told The New York Times. "She just lived life to the fullest. She really wanted to accomplish this."
Rzucidlo lived in New York City but grew up in Auburn, Massachusetts. According to Boston.com she climbed Mount Everest in 2018, and then completed the Seven Summits--climbing the highest point on all continents--the following year. In 2021 Rzucidlo ascended 26,545-foot Annapurna, and the following season she ascended 28,251-foot K2. The Times reported that Rzucidlo was attempting to scale five of the 8000-meter peaks in 2023 to complete the 14, and that Shishapangma was her final ascent.
"When she set her mind on a goal, there was no quitting, and she would succeed," Rzucidlo's brother, Terry Rzucidlo, told Boston.com.
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