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Emergency crews have successfully guided all of the remaining adventurers near the eastern slopes of Mount Everest in Tibet to a secure location, along with numerous of native guides and yak herders, officials reported. This marks the end one of the largest search-and-rescue efforts ever conducted in the region.

Large-Scale Rescue Operation Concluded

Numerous of explorers were found themselves stuck in deep snow over the recent weekend in the isolated Karma valley, after an unusually powerful blizzard unleashed substantial snowfall across the region.

Snow kept coming down all day Saturday in the valley, which sits at an average altitude of 4,200 meters (13,800 feet). By Sunday, rescuers had escorted approximately 350 hikers to safety.

Earlier reports had estimated that the last group of roughly 200 travelers were expected to reach safety by Tuesday.

In total, 580 mountaineers, along with more than 300 escorts, livestock herders, and other assistants were brought out, according to official reports released on Tuesday evening.

Those Rescued Describe Harsh Conditions

One Chinese trekker shared how their group had been “too scared to sleep” on Saturday, as snow swiftly built up around their tents, compelling them to shovel it every 90 minutes. They chose to go down on Sunday as the conditions worsened.

“On the way, we met our guide’s father, who had ventured for him. That’s when we realized the snow was deep in the valley, too; villagers, not able to contact their children on the mountain, were very anxious.”

Expedition Schedules Disrupted

The snowstorm also disrupted the plans of mountaineers escorted by a US-based expedition firm to ascend Cho Oyu, an 8,188-meter (26,864-foot) peak on the border between the People's Republic of China and the nation of Nepal.

Visitor Increase in the Region

Karma valley was first discovered by international adventurers a hundred years ago. In recent years, with the expansion of the Everest region in Tibet as a prominent travel destination, the area has attracted an growing number of visitors. More than 540,000 visitors traveled to the Everest region last year, marking a new record.

Region Remains Closed

The Everest region remains currently inaccessible to the visitors, covering the Karma and Rongshar valleys, as well as Cho Oyu.

Wider Effect

The heavy snowfall over the weekend also impacted numerous of trekkers in other parts of the western regions of China, for example Xinjiang, Qinghai, and Gansu. Tragically, at least one person died, due to a mix of low body temperature and altitude sickness.

Unusual Weather

October is typically a busy season for the area, with typically fine and mild weather, but one participant of an 18-person trekking group that returned safely to Qudang noted that the weather this year was “unusual.”