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Trekkers have described facing "extreme" conditions after an unseasonable blizzard during one of China's most crowded festive periods stranded numerous of people on Mount Everest, sparking a large-scale rescue effort.

Rescue Operations Underway

Chinese authorities reported that around 350 people had made their way down but at least 200 remained stranded at the Everest Scenic Area, located to the eastern side of the mountain, on the Tibet side of the border.

Large groups of tourists had traveled to the region for "Golden Week," an eight-day holiday period in China. However, local officials, who control the Tibetan Autonomous Region, confirmed intense snow had hit the area on Friday and Saturday night, stranding numerous of people at tent sites at an altitude of more than 4,900 meters (16,000 feet).

"It was the harshest weather I've ever faced in all my hiking experiences, undoubtedly," a Chinese trekker stated on social media, detailing a "violent convective snowstorm on the east face" of Everest.

"I looked up in the middle of the night and noticed that the snow had nearly buried the peak," said a hiker on a social platform. "It was the initial instance I genuinely experienced the fear of being buried alive."

Personal Accounts

One Chinese trekker mentioned their group had been "too frightened to sleep" on Saturday as accumulation rapidly built up around their tents, compelling them to remove it every 90 minutes. They chose to go down on Sunday as the conditions deteriorated.

"During the descent, we met our guide's father who had come looking for him. That's when we discovered the storm was intense in the valley too; villagers, unable to reach their family on the mountain, were deeply concerned."

The north and east side of Everest is more accessible than locations on the neighboring side of the border and draws high numbers of tourists for easier hiking, not requiring ascent of the peak.

Visual Evidence

Images and footage shared on the internet depicted tents buried in snow and lines of trekkers walking through waist-high drifts to descend the mountain.

"The snow was extremely thick, and the trail very slick. Hikers often slipped – some fell, others were bumped by pack animals," noted a trekker, who clarified that everyone made it down and were transported by bus.

Current Status

By Sunday afternoon, about 350 individuals had arrived in Qudang, a village about 30 miles away from the Tibetan starting point of Everest, "safe and sound," state media announced.

No fewer than 200 additional were still stranded but had been contacted, the updates said. Media outlets reported that hundreds of emergency workers had ascended the mountain to help people and remove accumulation from blocking the exit route.

Officials provided minimal updates or new details about the rescue effort on Monday. It was also not clear if the storm had affected individuals on the north face of Everest, also in Tibet. The region is strictly regulated by the authorities, and journalistic access is limited. The weather also seemed to have disrupted phone services, with calls to local businesses not connecting. Several trekkers said electricity was cut in Qudang when they reached the town.

Seasonal Context

October is a peak season for the region, with usually calm and pleasant weather, but Chen Geshuang, one of 18 participants of a trekking group that returned to Qudang, commented that the climate this year was "not normal."

"Our leader told us he had not experienced such weather in the fall. And it occurred very abruptly."

The regional travel department said admissions and access to the Everest Scenic Area were halted from Saturday.

Regional Impact

Adjacent nations were also hit by extreme weather. Heavy rains caused landslides and sudden flooding that have blocked roads, washed away bridges, and claimed the lives of at least 47 people since the start of the weekend in the neighboring country.