First Sri Lankan to climb Mount Everest returns safely

The first-ever Sri Lankan to reach Mount Everest, Jayanthi Kuru-Utumpala, has returned safely to the Nepali capital of Kathmandu, the BBC Sinhala Service reported.

Jayanthi Kuru-Utumpala, who started the trek to the summit with fellow climber Yohan Peiris, made history on 21 May as the first Sri Lankan to summit the formidable mountain at 29,029 feet.

However, Peiris, who reached the summit within 100 meters, could not finish the climb due to health reasons, Jayanthi told BBC.

During this year’s spring season, the first climbing season for two years on Everest after the Nepal earthquake, the altitude sickness has claimed three climbers in three days after they reached the summit.

Dutch climber Eric Ary Arnold died on Friday after reaching the summit, then on Saturday, 34-year-old Australian woman Maria Strydom died while descending. Indian Subhash Paul died on Sunday after reaching the summit a day before, as Sherpa guides were helping him descend.

Some 30 climbers have suffered frostbite or become seriously ill on Everest in recent days, as the spring climbing season comes to a close, according to BBC.