After Mount Everest, Coronavirus Reaches Dhaulagiri, the World's 7th Tallest Mountain, 7 Climbers Test COVID-19 Positive: Report
After reaching Mount Everest, the world's tallest mountain, coronavirus has reportedly made its way to the Himalayan peak of Dhaulagiri.
Kathmandu, May 7: After reaching Mount Everest, the world's tallest mountain, coronavirus has reportedly made its way to the Himalayan peak of Dhaulagiri. Situated in western Nepal, Dhaulagiri is the seventh highest mountain in the world. According to a report, at least 19 people have been evacuated out of the Dhaulagiri base camp in last two days after they showed symptoms of COVID-19. Coronavirus Reaches Mount Everest, Norwegian Climber Erlend Ness Tests COVID-19 Positive.
Of the 19 evacuees, seven tested positive for coronavirus, a CNN report quoting the chairperson of tour operator Seven Summits Trek Mingma Sherpa as saying. The remaining 12 are also displaying COVID-19 symptoms and will undergo test. On Mount Everest too, 30 people have been evacuated from base camp and subsequently tested positive coronavirus after April, Polish climber Pawel Michalski claimed in a Facebook post. Coronavirus Reaches Amazon's Remote Yanomami Tribe, 15-Year-Old Boy Dies Raising Concerns.
Tourism officials in Nepal, however, rejected fresh reports of climbers testing COVID-19 positive. "We have been notified that some climbers were airlifted to Kathmandu for respiratory problems and pneumonia. We were not officially notified that any one of them had tested positive for Covid-19," Bhishma Raj Bhattarai, a section officer at the Department of Tourism, told Xinhua news agency.
Mira Acharya, Director of the Department, has been at the base Everest for the last few days, said nobody has claimed that anybody has developed COVID-19 symptoms. In a bid to boost tourism industry, largely hit by the pandemic, Nepal has eased quarantine rules for foreigners.
The Nepal government issued climbing permits for 408 climbers this year, a record high for Mt. Everest, according to the Department of Tourism. The first COVID-19 case at the Mt. Everest base camp was detected in April this year when a Norwegian climber had contracted the deadly virus.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 07, 2021 02:47 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).