Not Risk Free Fun
Everyone who climbs Everest is well aware of the high risks; over 1 in every 20 climbers can die in any one year.
I have no sympathy for him, only his family.
One of Google's top privacy wonks was killed by an avalanche on Mount Everest on Saturday. The snowslide was triggered by a massive Nepal earthquake that has reportedly claimed the lives of more than 2,000 people in the region. Dan Fredinburg had worked at Google since 2007 as a product manager, software engineer and the ad …
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To focus on the climbers who implicitly accept the danger of their deliberate actions rather than on the residents of the numerous villages, towns, and cities affected by this awful disaster is utter sensationalism.
I presume a Google exec will have had appropriate life insurance. Move on. No story.
Many Nepalese who have suffered loss or injury are not in such a happy place. *That* is the terrible tragedy. That is why I cry today.
I presume a Google exec will have had appropriate life insurance. Move on. No story. Many Nepalese who have suffered loss or injury are not in such a happy place.
Part of being an adult is being able to recognize that both are sad, and both deserve acknowledgement, rather than feeling the need to play them off against each other as though they were sports teams. Perhaps someday you'll grow up and understand that.
Yes they are, and they still do it for the excitement. Part of mountaineering is about managing risk, or would you much rather sit in your safe IT bubble becoming one of the 1 in 4 people in the UK who are obese?
I have friends that where at C1 when the avalanche hit, I feel lucky they are okay. I have sympathy for both, you take the risks for the things you enjoy.
It would be nice if Google loaded up one of their private jets with as much useful stuff as ir can carry and sent it off to Nepal.
It's a shitty thing to happen to Nepal but if Google want their people back as quickly as possible it would be nice if they did something useful at the same time. No doubt there are "issues" with getting flight plans and clearance set up, including re-fueling stops en route, but I suspect it's not beyond the power and money of Google to organise something more quickly than others might manage.
A Gulfstream G-650 or a Bombardier Global Express could make it from Mountain View to Nepal without refueling, and with Google using JPL as a private hanger, clearance is much easier than flying out of a commercial air field. And I'm sure that Nepal would give them priority clearance if they are coming in with a load of relief supplies, doctors, and other necessities.
Perhaps Nepal should just hold all foreigners until their host nations send aid, or the crisis is over...
A 7.8 is a nasty, nasty earthquake.
Indeed. The 2011 Christchurch quake was, what, "only" 6.3? (Note the Richter scale is base-10 logarithmic.) And that one was very bad for those affected.
Of course, the magnitude of the earthquake doesn't really say much about the human cost. The '64 Alaska quake was a stunning 9.1, but caused relatively few deaths (around the same order of magnitude as Christchurch, I believe) because of low population density. Last I heard, we were up to over 4000 from the Nepal earthquake - among, as others have pointed out, a population that is largely poor to begin with.
A couple of years ago I went on a regular trekking trip to Base camp like thousands before me.
You can go in October, walk in glorious sunshine along well-worn paths to much-visited temples and be aware that the risk seems akin to a day walking Helvellyn.
Then a Cyclone can occur in the Indian ocean, a metre of snowfall in the night, temperature drops to -15C, you are in a remote valley walking pathless with near-zero visibility trying not to fully immerse ones feet in a stream that must be crossed because the bridge is now impossible to reach. You wish that a Yak could be found to clear the snow so each step is not in 75cm of snow with god-knows-what underneath.
Fortunately for all the soft westerners concerned, you have the toughest bastards on earth available to tramp ahead of you in the snow and make it a trench with an icy bottom and stand in the running water while everyone jumps the stream with a boost and stability supplied by them and carrying packs for the most tired etc.
It is unrealistic and unfair to say that soft westerners shouldn't go to Everest Base Camp because it might snow or an earthquake could occur. It is bad luck indeed for the Google man as it was for many during our trip (we heard at least six avalanches during our escape phase). The group of Aussies just behind us got trapped a the valley because the pass we just managed to get through was impassable (they all had to fly out after it cleared up a bit). The money westerners bring is a smallish part of Nepal's GDP but a large part of the Sherpa community's income.
Sherpas are extraordinary people who do a stupidly dangerous job through necessity (they couldn't care less about summiting Everest, it is the most sacred mountain to them, the home of the Earth Mother). They care only to ensure that their customer comes to no harm, obviously useful to their reputation too.
If you watch a local carrying 80kgs for a full day uphill where there is only 2/3 of the 'proper' amount of Oxygen available, you begin to see how superhuman they are.
Seeing the main temple I visited and the main square in the city devastated was sad indeed.
I hope that they can get back on their feet in double-quick time as I am sure such an industrious and hard-working nation of people will.
A tragedy for everyone, no just Nepal. It's far worse there and yes, I would hope Google will load the plane up and also bring back some of the injured. I'm pretty sure that whatever medical facilities are left standing are in pretty bad shape and the death toll will go up due to lack of treatment.
This is one of those defining moments for mankind just like Fukushima. There will be those who rise above and try to solve the problems. Then there are those who will simply be asses and look to fix blame or ignore it since it doesn't personally affect them.
"bring back some of the injured"?
The overwhelming number of injured, homeless people are local. Just where do you propose to "bring them back to"? Last week? And tell them to jump when it happens?
Sure, there are many foreign nationals in the country at the moment - they are risk takers, and have insurance. They don't really matter at the moment. So many locals have lost so much (family, homes, businesses)
Indeed... some of the US injured, maybe? Back to the States? I'm sure the hospitals that are still standing are overloaded... Yeah.. rich tourists with insurance, you attitude says let take a bed from the locals. If not them, then bring a few of the seriously injured locals to the States for treatment.
If Google sends a plane, the damn thing should be loaded with supplies. When it comes back, load it with people. A few is better than none.
Agreement and confirmation that I've already seen reports of their hospitals being overloaded. However, one more wrinkle is that they need to be sure such a flight doesn't interfere with more serious relief efforts. Rather than trying to find a place to land near Mount Everest, it might be better if they use a helicopter from a less devastated area for the last leg...