Family questions rescue efforts for Sherpa guide found alive on Everest

A Sherpa guide who survived a week on the treacherous slopes of Mount Everest was recovering at a hospital in Nepal's capital on Friday, while his family angered by a delay in rescue efforts sought legal action against those responsible.



Dawa Sherpa was found Thursday crawling in the snowy slopes around the Khumbu Icefall, just above Everest base camp, a week after he went missing.



The 57-year-old was flown to a Kathmandu hospital and reunited with his family. He was being treated for frostbite, dehydration and problems in his thighs but was stable and recovering, HAMS Hospital said in a statement.



His family said they were upset that the search had not begun earlier and filed a police case against Dawa's employer, the Kathmandu-based Himalayan Traverse company, and a complaint at the Department of Tourism, which handles mountaineering in Nepal.“



Action needs to be taken by the mountaineering department. It was negligence of the company that resulted in so much delay in starting rescue,” Dawa's nephew, Karma Gelje Sherpa, said.



“If he had been a foreign climber, rescue would definitely have been organised much faster and prompt, but he happened to be an old Nepali.”



Himalayan Traverse could not be immediately reached for comment on Friday.