Michelle Ruiz
Contributor

AOL News (June 2) –– When Peter Kinloch achieved his lifelong goal of climbing Mount Everest, a team member described the Scottish IT consultant as "elated, cheery and bubbly" as he gazed out at the world from 29,029 feet.

Hours later, robbed of his eyesight and suffering from frostbite and exhaustion, Kinloch died on the mountain he had dreamed of climbing since childhood. Teammates and rescue Sherpas were forced to abandon him on May 26 after toiling to help him for 12 hours with oxygen and drugs. They feared they would become trapped by an onslaught of severe weather in the mountain's "death zone."

Kinloch's body remains on the mountain, 600 feet below the summit, with Tibetan authorities declining to comment on whether they will attempt to recover it. Kinloch was 28 years old.


peterkinloch.co.uk
Climber Peter Kinloch died on Mount Everest after reaching the mountain's summit.
"'We can take comfort in that he achieved one of his ambitions," his father, Peter Kinloch, 56, told the Daily Mail.

The details of Kinloch's tragic descent are emerging through an account from an unnamed teammate posted today at EverestNews.com. According to the report, Kinloch was struck with blindness shortly after reaching Everest's summit after 1 p.m. on May 25.

"Peter surprisingly seemed to lose his coordination and took a few slips and stumbles," the report reads, adding that Kinloch eventually told team leader David O'Brien "that he couldn't see anything at all and was blind."

Over the next four hours, O'Brien and a Sherpa slowly guided Kinloch to Mushroom Rock, less than 1,000 feet below the summit. There, the teammate writes, Kinloch was given food and water, finding him "sharp" and "coherent" but suffering from signs of frostbite on two of his fingers.

After two additional Sherpas arrived, the five-person rescue crew spent another eight hours trying to get Kinloch down the mountain, administering oxygen and a shot of steroid dexamethasone, according to The Times of London.

It was to no avail.

Still in the "death zone" where it is impossible for the human body to acclimate, and facing the approach of severe weather that threatened their own lives, the team was forced to abandon Kinloch at 2 a.m. and continue their descent.

"The rescue team did everything in their power to help Peter ... coming dangerously close to needing their own rescue and not returning themselves," Kinloch's teammate wrote. "It is with our deepest regrets that we report the passing of Peter Kinloch, who was a bright spark in our team ... he is missed very much."

Kinloch's body may never be recovered, but fiancee, Gul Cosguner, has pleaded for the return of his remains, telling the Times: "I want to see Peter come home."
Filed under: World
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