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Trekkers have described encountering "harsh" situations after an unexpected blizzard during one of China's most crowded holiday weekends trapped numerous of people on Mount Everest, sparking a large-scale rescue effort.

Evacuation Efforts Underway

Officials in China stated that around 350 individuals had made their way down but at least 200 were still trapped at the Everest Scenic Area, located to the eastern side of the mountain, on the Tibetan side of the border.

Large groups of tourists had traveled to the area for "Golden Week," an eight-day holiday period in China. However, Chinese authorities, who control the Tibetan Autonomous Region, said intense snow had hit the area on the weekend, stranding hundreds of people at campsites at an altitude of more than 4,900 meters (16,000 feet).

"It was the harshest conditions I've experienced in all my hiking experiences, without question," a Chinese trekker said on social media, describing a "violent convective snowstorm on the east face" of Everest.

"I looked up in the late hours and noticed that the accumulation had nearly buried the peak," shared another trekker on Xiaohongshu. "That was the initial instance I genuinely experienced the fear of being engulfed by snow."

Eyewitness Reports

One Chinese trekker said their party had been "too frightened to sleep" on Saturday as snow quickly piled up around their tents, forcing them to remove it hourly. They decided to go down on Sunday as the conditions deteriorated.

"During the descent, we met our guide’s parent who had searched for him. It was then we learned the snow was heavy in the lowlands as well; villagers, unable to reach their children on the mountain, were extremely worried."

The north and east side of Everest is easier to reach than sites on the Nepal side of the border and attracts large crowds of tourists for less technical trekking, not requiring ascent of the peak.

Online Documentation

Images and footage posted online depicted shelters covered by snow and lines of trekkers walking through waist-high snowbanks to descend the mountain.

"It was extremely thick, and the path very slick. Trekkers often slipped – some fell, some were jostled by pack animals," noted a trekker, who clarified that everyone made it down and were picked up by bus.

Latest Developments

By Sunday afternoon, approximately 350 individuals had arrived in Qudang, a small town roughly 50 kilometers away from the Tibet-side starting point of Everest, "in good health," official sources reported.

At least 200 additional were still stranded but had been reached, the updates indicated. Local news stated that hundreds of emergency workers had ascended the mountain to help people and remove accumulation from blocking the way out.

Officials provided minimal updates or updated information about the operation on Monday. Uncertainty remained if the weather had affected individuals on the northern side of Everest, within the same region. The region is tightly controlled by the Chinese government, and media entry is restricted. The conditions also seemed to have disrupted phone services, with attempts to contact shops failing. A number of hikers reported power was out in Qudang when they arrived.

Seasonal Context

Autumn is a busy period for the area, with usually clear and mild conditions, but one trekker, one of 18 members of a trekking group that returned to Qudang, said that the climate this year was "unusual."

"Our leader said he had never encountered such weather in October. And it happened very abruptly."

The local tourism authority said admissions and entry to the Everest Scenic Area were suspended from the weekend.

Broader Effects

Neighbouring countries were also hit by extreme weather. Heavy rains triggered landslides and sudden flooding that have closed routes, destroyed crossings, and claimed the lives of at least 47 individuals since the start of the weekend in Nepal.