Australian on Everest Still Alive And Being Rescued

[TorchTheWitch]

After reading about the sad story of the death of Dave Sharp on Mt. Everest I thought some good news was in order. An Australian, Lincoln Hall, was reported dead yesterday but was found to be alive after all and a rescue mission to save his life is underway...


Everest Rescue Underway For Australian
May 26, 2006 - 11:10AM

A dramatic rescue operation is underway in the hope of saving the life of an Australian climber given up for dead on Mount Everest.

Lincoln Hall, 50, and one of Australia's leading climbers, was reported by a Russian expedition leader to have died on Thursday while descending from the summit of the world's highest mountain.

Friends in Australia mourned Hall after Russian Alexander Abramov declared on Everest news websites that the climber's death "was verified", and was probably due to cerebral edema.

However, the reports were thrown into confusion on Friday by a new website posting by Australian climber and Everest summiteer Duncan Chessell, who said a climber had found Hall alive and set in train a rescue operation.

more...
http://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Everest-rescue-underway-for-Australian/2006/05/26/1148524856534.html


Climber Reported Dead On Everest May Be Alive
26 May 2006 12:08

<snip>
Friends in Australia mourned Hall after Russian Alexander Abramov declared on Everest news websites that the climber had died of acute altitude sickness shortly after conquering the summit for the first time.

But that report was thrown into doubt on Friday when another Australian Everest summiteer, Duncan Chessell, said Hall had been found alive by another climber and a rescue operation was under way.

Chessell said he had been told by radio that Hall was being brought down the mountain by Russian-led team of sherpas.

"If he's alive he's high up and in serious danger," Chessell told the Australian news agency AAP from his home in Adelaide.

more...
http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=272811&area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__international_news/


I so hope he makes it!

[Random_Australian]

1. So do I.

[Binka]

2. Hang On Lincoln Hang On Baby!

[Roland99]

3. I can just imagine Beck Weathers reliving everything right now.

[devilgrrl]

4. Forgive my indifference to Beck Weathers plight...

he's fine now and back doing his work but from I've read about him, he had no climbing experience and more or less had no business climbing Everest to begin with. He's just another jerk with more money than he knew what to do with and should thank his lucky stars that his frozen corpse isn't still stuck on the side of that mountain.

[TorchTheWitch]

5. Hall's situation grim

Aust Everest Climber 'Found Alive'
Friday, May 26, 2006. 11:08pm (AEST)

The Australian Mount Everest climber reported dead has been found alive, according to his expedition.

Lincoln Hall collapsed from altitude sickness after reaching the summit of Mount Everest yesterday and his fellow climbers were ordered to abandon him, leaving him to spend the night alone.

Duncan Chessel - a climber from South Australia - says his expedition has been told an American climber found Mr Hall this morning and a rescue effort is under way.

But he told Lateline Mr Hall's condition is believed to be critical. "He's at this stage in an extremely perilous condition and a very perilous place," Mr Chessel said. "He's still well above 8,000 metres. It's unsure whether he'll even survive the day. "He's still probably two to three days from reaching base camp."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200605/s1648773.htm

Still hoping for some good news on this guy!

[TorchTheWitch]

6. Hall doing better

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/everest-climber-confirmed-alive/2006/05/26/1148524892222.html

<snip>
"We now have a reliable report that he is alive," said a friend, Simon Balderstone at 2am Saturday morning.

Hall had now been moved from 8700 metres to the North Col camp at 7000 metres on the mountain, Balderstone said. Hall was sleeping at the camp overnight, according to Everestnews.com.

"He has frost bite and is being treated by exhibition doctors," Mr Balderstone said. "He still has symptoms of cerebral edema."

<snip>
Mr Abramov said a group of sherpas would bring Hall down to 6400 metres at dawn today.
"Descent to ABC (advance base camp) is supposed to be begun at dawn," Abramov said.


Kind of interesting that so much attention is being paid to how shameful it is to ignore a dying man on Everest when so many obviously have little interest in one that WASN'T ignored.

[Lisa]

7. I hope he'll be okay

Someone on an earlier thread had noted that it would be difficult to spend one's savings on an expedition of a lifetime, only to have to give up because someone else needed rescuing. I would think that saving a life under those circumstances wouldn't be any less gratifying than having climbed the world's highest mountain!

[me b zola]

9. Agreed

Often times it is the unexpected things in life that give us the opportunity to achieve things even greater then the goals that we had set out to accomplish.

The personality type that would enjoy success at reaching the moutain top only by stepping over the body of a dying person reminds me much of the personalities that we see in the corporate world. They are so goal driven that they have lost their humanity along the way--Enron & Halliburtin come to mind. And life, after all, is not about the destination but is all about the journey. :)


I wish the climber a full recovery.

[TorchTheWitch]

8. Hall walks into base camp

Climber Hall Reaches Everest Base Camp
May 27, 2006 - 5:59AM

Australian climber Lincoln Hall has just walked into the advanced base camp on Mount Everest in reasonably good health, a fellow climber says.

<snip>
South Australian climber Duncan Chessell, who runs DCXP Mountain Journeys, told AAP shortly before 3pm (AEST) on Saturday that he had received a call from one of his guides on the mountain, Jamie McGuinness, telling him the news.

"He's in reasonably good condition but he doesn't have much memory of things at this stage," Mr. Chessell said.

"Basically he's been able to come down under his own steam, without assistance, is what Jamie reported.

more...
http://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Climber-Hall-reaches-Everest-base-camp/2006/05/27/1148524914382.html


Joint effort never before seen on Everest’s North side: Lincoln Hall in C1
10:55 am EST May 26, 2006
(MountEverest.net)

Early this morning, climbers on their way up the mountain found Australian Lincoln Hall still alive - after his spending one night in the open at 8700m. A rescue operation was immediately launched – resulting in an unprecedented joint effort from all teams still on Everest’s north side.

Sherpas reached Lincoln who, after receiving O2 and drugs, regained consciousness but remained in extremely serious condition. He was transported down across the technical upper sections of Everest.

At 10:00 this evening local time Lincoln is in camp at North Col 7000m; he even made the snow slope from 7500 m without assistance, Abramov reports. With him now in the makeshift hospital tent is doctor Andrey Selivanov . Lincoln is confused, due to acute brain edema and hypoxia. The doctor examined his hands, frostbitten 2-3 degrees. Lincoln remains in critical condition, but on a question regarding the outlook, the doctor said, "We shall overcome!".

"Now Lincoln Hall is in a warm, spacious tent with electric light, looked after by ten people. Descent to ABC is planned for tomorrow morning," Abramov said.


Lincoln is now in the North Col C1 tent. "In our big dining tent at the North Col, the expedition's doctor Andrey Selivanov has prepared a field hospital. The tent has tables, chairs, and electric light," Abramov reported earlier. Image of the camp at North Col, courtesy of the expedition

more...
http://www.mounteverest.net/news.php?id=3303


Pretty damn good especially considering they needed a stretcher for him at first. He just might make it!

[Kingshakabobo]

10. I guess this blows the idea that you can't rescue someone up there.

I think some people are under the impression that rescue entails only dragging a lifeless body down the mountain.