This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Australia, which closed in 2021.

Australian Woman Dies Descending Mount Everest

The tragedy comes as Aussie teen reaches the summit.
An Australian woman is one of two people who have died on Everest.
Reuters
An Australian woman is one of two people who have died on Everest.

Mount Everest has claimed the lives of an Australian academic and a Dutch mountaineer who have died of altitude sickness on the world's highest peak.

The tragedy follows news that teenager Alyssa Azar has become the youngest Aussie to scale the famous mountain.

The deceased Australian climber has been identified in media reports as Monash University academic Maria Strydom.

She is said to have been with her husband and 10 other climbers at Everest when she became sick.

DFAT told The Huffington Post Australia that the agency was providing consular assistance to the "family of an Australian woman reported to have died on Mt Everest in Nepal".

"DFAT is also providing consular assistance to an injured Australian man accompanying the woman. Due to our privacy obligations, we will not provide further comment," DFAT said.

Organisers told the ABC that the Australian woman, in her mid 30s, had reached the summit before she fell ill as she was descending from the mountain, which is located in a remote part of Nepal.

The Dutch mountaineer, named as Eric Arnold, also came down with altitude sickness and died at Camp 4 late on Friday, according to the ABC.

Meanwhile, Queenslander Azar became the youngest Australian to conquer the peak.

It was the teenager's third attempt at scaling the mountain, after two previous aborted attempts.

Ms Azar's 2014 effort ended while she was still at base camp after an avalanche struck the area and in 2015 she was stymied by an earthquake in the region.

Close
This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Australia. Certain site features have been disabled. If you have questions or concerns, please check our FAQ or contact support@huffpost.com.