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Trekkers have described encountering "extreme" situations after an unexpected blizzard during one of China's busiest holiday weekends stranded hundreds of people on Mount Everest, triggering a large-scale rescue operation.

Evacuation Efforts In Progress

Officials in China reported that approximately 350 people had descended safely but at least 200 remained stranded at the Everest Scenic Area, situated to the east of the mountain, on the Tibet side of the border.

Crowds of visitors had journeyed to the region for "Golden Week," an week-long holiday period in China. However, Chinese authorities, who administer the Tibetan Autonomous Region, said intense snow had affected the area on Friday and Saturday night, stranding hundreds of people at tent sites at an altitude of more than 4,900 meters (16,000 feet).

"It was the most extreme conditions I've experienced in all my trekking adventures, without question," Dong Shuchang said on Weibo, detailing a "violent convective blizzard on the eastern slope" of Everest.

"I looked up in the middle of the night and noticed that the snow had almost buried the top," said another trekker on Xiaohongshu. "It was the initial instance I genuinely experienced the fear of being buried alive."

Eyewitness Reports

A hiker from China mentioned their party had been "too frightened to sleep" on Saturday as snow rapidly built up around their tents, forcing them to remove it hourly. They decided to go down on the next day as the conditions worsened.

"During the descent, we encountered our guide’s parent who had searched for him. That's when we learned the snow was heavy in the lowlands as well; villagers, unable to contact their family on the mountain, were deeply concerned."

The north and east side of Everest is easier to reach than locations on the Nepal side of the border and draws high numbers of visitors for easier trekking, without summiting the peak.

Online Documentation

Images and footage shared on the internet showed shelters buried in snow and rows of trekkers walking through deep drifts to get down the mountain.

"The snow was extremely thick, and the path very slick. Hikers often slipped – some fell, some were jostled by yaks," noted a trekker, who added that everyone made it down and were transported by bus.

Latest Developments

By Sunday afternoon, about 350 individuals had arrived in Qudang, a village roughly 50 kilometers away from the Tibetan base camp of Everest, "in good health," state media reported.

At least 200 additional remained trapped but had been reached, the updates indicated. Local news reported that hundreds of rescuers had gone up the mountain to help people and remove accumulation from obstructing the way out.

Officials provided little official reporting or updated information 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 strictly regulated by the authorities, and media entry is limited. The weather also appears to have have disrupted phone services, with attempts to contact shops failing. A number of hikers reported electricity was cut in Qudang when they reached the town.

Seasonal Context

October is a busy period for the area, with typically clear and mild weather, but Chen Geshuang, among 18 participants of a trekking group that made it back to Qudang, commented that the climate this year was "unusual."

"Our leader said he had not experienced such weather in October. And it occurred all too suddenly."

The local tourism authority said admissions and access to the Everest Scenic Area were suspended from Saturday.

Regional Impact

Adjacent nations were also hit by extreme weather. Torrential downpours caused mudslides and sudden flooding that have blocked roads, washed away bridges, and claimed the lives of at least 47 people since the start of the weekend in Nepal.