May 25: A Nepalese Sherpa, who has set a world record for maximum number of ascents of world’s highest peak Mount Everest, has warned that its glaciers and ice walls were melting at an alarming rate and could soon pose danger of sudden flooding in villages lower down in Nepal and Tibet.
Appa Sherpa, the record 19th times Everest summiteer said, he wants to continue climbing the Everest in the years to come in order to spread message of impact of climate change across the globe. "I will continue climbing the mountain till the message of climate change get spread worldwide," he told reporters today at a programme organised here to honour him. Mr Sherpa, who for the first time reached atop Everest (8848 metres) in 1990, scaled the Everest for the 19th time on May 19 as part of the Eco Everest Expedition 2009.
Mr Sherpa carried with him WWF banner with the slogan "Stop Climate Change — Let the Himalayas Live" atop the Everest. He also installed a Bumpa (sacred vase) blessed by the Venerable Rimpoche of Tengboche Monastery that contains 400 different sacred ingredients.
The offering was to seek to reduce negative impacts of environmental degradation and restore sanctity of the Himalayas as well as to promote world peace.
Mr Sherpa suffered personal loss of home and property during the Dig Tsho Glacial Lake outburst flood in 1985. He then dedicated himself for the cause of saving the Himalayas from the impact of climate change. "I myself is the victim of climate change and I want to save the Himalayas for the future generations," he said.
He said there are remarkable differences on the Everest between the time when he climbed Everest for the first time in 1990 and now. The snow has melted in some parts of the Everest at an altitude over 8,000 metres.
