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Nepalese climber rescued from Everest

         London: British doctors who scaled Everest to study the effects of lack of oxygen, saved the life of a 22-year-old Nepalese climber. He was found unconscious at an altitude of 8,500 m, the so-called "death zone" near the summit of Everest. Usha Bista, who had allegedly been abandoned by her expedition team after she became sick on her way up the mountain, was discovered lying beside a path by a member of the Canadian air force. She was then helped down the mountain to the South Col camp, where the British doctors had established a laboratory to explore hypoxia or oxygen deficiency in the blood. Bista was given emergency treatment by the team who diagnosed a swelling of the brain caused by high altitude. They then escorted the woman down to a point where she could be picked up by helicopter. Dr Mike Grocott, a University College London (UCL) physiology lecturer who was heading the research, was quoted by The Independent as saying that "It seems that she was on a relatively under-resourced expedition. She had an inadequate amount of oxygen - probably only one cylinder, which is not really enough to get to the top of Everest and back again. She developed something called high-altitude cerebral edema due to low oxygen levels." Cases of climbers with insufficient oxygen are a regular problem on Everest, where a number of rogue operators and tour guides lead expeditions without sufficient supplies. Bista, who is expected to make a full recovery, claimed this weekend that her sherpa and team members had refused to give her food or water and abandoned her after she fell ill. Nepalese officials said that they were investigating her complaints.
-May 29,  2007