A mountain climber with ties to Maine is among the 10 climbers who died trying to ascend the world’s tallest peak last week.
Kevin Hynes, a 56-year-old father of two from County Galway in Ireland who lived part time in Windham, died Friday while descending Mount Everest. He reached an Everest camp at about 27,000 feet, or 2,000 feet below the summit.
While other members of his expedition continued up toward the summit, Hynes began descending. He made it down to about 22,000 feet and died in his tent early Friday, according to a Facebook post from his expedition team.
BBC News reported Hynes felt unwell and turned back. Friends told News Center Maine that Hynes lived in Windham part time for the past eight years and had built a camp in Casco.
His death was reported by 360 Expeditions, a mountaineering and expedition outfit based in the United Kingdom. The post Friday described Hynes as “one of the strongest and most experienced climbers on our team, and had previously summited Everest South and Lhotse.”
“We were texting him yesterday afternoon (although had no replies) asking him how he was and knowing that he would have been devastated not to have been part of the summit push.”
Hynes is among 10 climbers who have died on Everest in recent days. Other deaths include a man from Utah, four Indian climbers, a Nepalese guide, an Austrian and a Brit. A second Irish climber died after falling on the mountain.
Hynes’ family told the Irish media outlet RTE that they are devastated by his death and appreciate the worldwide words of support.
According to the BBC, 600 people reached the summit on the Nepal side of the mountain as of Friday. Many experts say the mountain is overcrowded, creating long waits to reach the summit.
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