Everest 2006: Swee Chiow to attempt Mt EVEREST WITHOUT OXYGEN: Sickness on the Mountain

Base Camp. 01 May 06

Sickness on the Mountain

I caught a very bad cough & cold at C2. Nasal congestion caused me to wake up frequently at night to blow my nose. The coughs sent searing pain through my throat as if someone was sand-papering it. The panadol & logenzes Vincent gave me didn't work.

After 2 nights at C2, I decided I needed to get down to BC to recuperate & see doctor. The body can't heal at 6300m. Since Vincent is healthy, he will stay at C2 to go up to C3 for acclimatization in the next few days.

So at 1pm today, I started down to BC. It was a slow and painful walk. With the incessant cough, I had to stop regularly to catch my breath. Descending the icefall was a nightmare. It started snowing heavily with poor visibility. One section of the icefall had just collapsed. I saw a ladder twisted and crushed under the power of the ice. The rope was broken. For the next 100m or so, I had to find my way to the other side of the rope where the route continues down.

The place was very dangerous. To be in this situation in a healthy state is hard enough. To be going through this when you're sick, it's a lot of suffering. I didn't want to be there. I just wanted to curl up in my sleeping bag at BC. And I didn't want to be there alone. Furi hasn't caught up with me yet as he was coming down from C3. Luckily, there were 2 Polish behind me. So I pressed on.

Thank God we made it through that broken section safely. Furi caught up with me near BC. 

Dr Eric quickly did a checkup on me. He started me on antibiotic & cough drop immediately. 

While I was at the clinic, there was an Italian climber lying unconscious on the bed breathing oxygen. He had taken a fall this afternoon in the icefall and his ice-axe hit his head causing serious injury. He is awaiting a helicopter rescue tomorrow morning. Just another warning of the danger in the icefall.

Cheers.

Swee Chiow

Base Camp. 27 April 06 

Going Higher

It's been a week since we came down from the 4-night adventure at C1. In between rest days, we took a walk to Gorak Shep and 2 days ago, I went up to C2 for a day visit. 

Today, the route to C3 is ready. Thanks to the bigger teams with many Sherpas manpower. 

Our next part of acclimatization plan is to go up to C1 tomorrow and C2 the following day. Our Sherpas are going to set up C2 tomorrow. After 1-2 days' rest at C2, we will go up to C3 for a day visit. Hopefully, by then, our C3 would be ready for us to spend 1-2 nights there.

So, if all goes well, we'll be away from BC for about a week.

The weather has been quite consistent - sunny in the morning, cloudy and snowing in the afternoon. Let's hope there is no storm while we are up there.

Vincent and myself are eating and sleeping well. No major problem so far. We are staying focus on the task ahead. Our Sherpas are doing well too. God has been good to keep us all safe. Thanks for all your prayers. I know many friends and strangers are praying for us.

It's been a month since I left home on 26th March. I can't wait to finish this climb and go home to my family. One more month to go. Next 3 weeks will be very exciting with possibly the 1st summit window approaching.

Stay tuned...

Cheers.

Swee Chiow 

Khoo Swee Chiow, Everest Climber, author and motivational speaker

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