A British climber died from frostbite and exhaustion on the slopes of Mount Everest just hours after he conquered the world's highest peak, The London Times reported Tuesday.
Peter Kinloch, 28, appeared “elated, cheery and bubbly” as he posed for photographs with his fellow climbers on the 29,029-foot summit on May 25, his team leader on the charity mission said.
But as he began his descent, the climber, who worked as a civilian IT specialist with the British police, began slipping and stumbling.
As conditions grew more difficult and a strong wind set in, Kinloch complained he could not see anything at all and was effectively blind. He also developed frostbite on two of his fingers.
He was taken to an area known as Mushroom Rock at 28,000 feet, where three sherpas battled to rescue him.
They spent the next eight hours trying to get him off the mountain, giving him drugs and oxygen, but were forced to retreat at around 2am on May 26 leaving his body in the snow, The Sun reported.
Kinloch was taking part in the Seven Summits challenge that sees climbers tackle the highest mountain in each continent.
His climbing party paid tribute to the seasoned adventurer, describing him as "a bright spark in our team."
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