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Hikers have recounted encountering "harsh" conditions after an unexpected snowstorm during one of China's most crowded festive periods stranded hundreds of individuals on Mount Everest, sparking a massive rescue effort.

Evacuation Efforts Underway

Chinese authorities stated that approximately 350 individuals had made their way down but at least 200 were still trapped at the Everest Scenic Area, located to the east of the mountain, on the Tibet side of the border.

Crowds of visitors had traveled to the region for "Golden Week," an week-long holiday period in China. However, Chinese authorities, who control the Tibetan Autonomous Region, said heavy snowfall had hit the area on Friday and Saturday night, trapping hundreds of people at tent sites at an elevation of more than 4,900 meters (16,000 feet).

"This was the most extreme weather I've ever faced in all my trekking experiences, undoubtedly," Dong Shuchang said on Weibo, detailing a "violent convective blizzard on the east face" of Everest.

"Glancing upward in the middle of the night and noticed that the accumulation had nearly buried the top," shared a hiker on a social platform. "That was the first time I genuinely experienced the fear of being engulfed by snow."

Personal Accounts

One Chinese trekker mentioned their party had been "too scared to sleep" on Saturday as snow quickly piled up around their shelters, forcing them to clear it every 90 minutes. They decided 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 learned the snow was intense in the lowlands too; villagers, unable to contact their family on the mountain, were extremely worried."

The northern and eastern side of Everest is easier to reach than sites on the neighboring side of the border and draws large crowds of visitors for less technical hiking, without summiting the peak.

Visual Evidence

Photos and video posted online showed tents buried in snow and lines of hikers walking through waist-high snowbanks to get down the mountain.

"It was very deep, and the path very slick. Hikers often slipped – a few tumbled, some were jostled by pack animals," noted a trekker, who clarified that all safely descended and were picked up by bus.

Current Status

By Sunday afternoon, approximately 350 people had arrived in Qudang, a village about 30 miles away from the Tibetan starting point of Everest, "in good health," state media announced.

At least 200 additional were still stranded but had been contacted, the reports indicated. Local news reported that hundreds of rescuers had ascended the mountain to assist those trapped and remove accumulation from obstructing the exit route.

Officials provided minimal updates or new details about the operation on the following day. It was also not clear if the weather had affected anyone on the northern side of Everest, also in Tibet. The region is tightly controlled by the Chinese government, and journalistic access is restricted. The weather also appears to have have disrupted local communications, with calls to local businesses failing. A number of hikers said electricity was cut in Qudang when they reached the town.

Weather Patterns

Autumn is a peak season for the area, with usually calm and pleasant conditions, but one trekker, one of 18 members of a trekking group that made it back to Qudang, said that the climate this year was "unusual."

"Our leader told us he had never encountered such weather in the fall. And it happened all too suddenly."

The local tourism authority said ticket sales and entry to the Everest Scenic Area were halted from Saturday.

Broader Effects

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