MOUNT EVEREST SEES RECORD DAILY ASCENT WITH 274 SUMMITS

KATMANDU, MAY 21 /SRNA/ - A total of 274 climbers reached the summit of Mount Everest yesterday, marking the highest number of people to have climbed the world's tallest peak in a single day from the Nepalese side.

General Secretary of the Nepal Expedition Operators Association, Rishi Bandari, said today that the record surpassed the previous one set on May 22, 2019, when 223 climbers reached the summit from Nepal.

"This is the highest number of climbers in a single day so far", Bandari told Reuters, adding that the figure could still rise as some climbers who reached the summit may not yet have reported their achievement to base camp.

No data is available from China on how many climbers reach the summit from the Tibetan side, but Bandari said that during the April-May climbing season, around 100 people attempt Everest from that side.

A Nepalese Ministry of Tourism official, Himal Gautam, said he had received preliminary information that more than 250 people reached the summit yesterday.

"We are waiting for the climbers to return, provide photos and other evidence of their ascent, and we will then issue them proper certificates. Only then will we be able to confirm the figures", Gautam told Reuters.

Nepal issued 494 climbing permits for Everest this year, each costing USD 15,000.

Experts frequently criticize Nepal for issuing a large number of permits, which can lead to dangerous congestion or long queues in the so-called "death zone" below the summit, where oxygen levels are too low to sustain human life.

Everest, standing at 8,849 meters, lies on the border between Nepal and China's Tibet region and can be climbed from both sides. Organizers say no climbers have attempted the Tibetan side this year as Chinese authorities have not issued permits.