KATHMANDU, Oct 17: Kanchha Sherpa, the last surviving member of the historic 1953 expedition that first conquered Mount Everest, passed away on Wednesday at his residence in Kapan, Kathmandu. He was 92.
Sherpa was part of the British expedition led by Colonel John Hunt, during which Sir Edmund Hillary of New Zealand and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa of Nepal successfully reached the summit of the world’s highest peak on May 29.
Guide team scales Everest at start of spring season
Serving as a porter in the team, Kanchha Sherpa had climbed up to the South Col at an altitude of over 8,000 meters. He later continued to work in mountaineering for two decades, contributing to Nepal’s early era of Himalayan expeditions.
According to family sources, Sherpa breathed his last at home on Wednesday morning. With his passing, an important living link to one of humanity’s greatest achievements in mountaineering history has come to an end.
