Nepal wants to limit age for Everest climbs after 85-year-old dies

Family members at Min Bahadur Sherchan burial

Family and supporters on Sunday honored the 85-year-old climber who died attempting to regain his title as the oldest person to scale Mount Everest, while Nepali officials stressed the need to limit the age for such a daunting physical challenge. The death of Min Bahadur Sherchan has revived concerns about allowing elderly people to attempt scaling mountain peaks where the conditions are harsh and the oxygen level is low. Under Nepali law, people have to be at least 16 years old to climb Everest, but there's no upper limit.
"It is very necessary to immediately bring that age limit law. If there had been a limit, the loss of life could have been prevented," said Ang Tshering, head of the Nepal Mountaineering Association.
The association is planning to push the government to limit the age of climbers to at least 76, he said.
Sherchan died Saturday evening at the Everest base camp. Another Nepali man, Shailendra Kumar Upadhyaya, died in 2011 at age 82 while attempting to scale Everest.
Hundreds of climbers have died on Everest. Since 1953, more than 4,000 have successfully summited the world's highest mountain . Bottled oxygen and better climbing equipment have helped reduce deaths significantly in recent decades, along with satellite communication equipment and better medical facilities.