Polish daredevil abandons attempt to ski down Everest

Kathmandu, Sept 30 (AFP/APP):A hanging chunk of ice the size of an apartment block has forced Polish daredevil Andrzej Bargiel to abandon his bid to ski down Mount Everest, he announced on his Facebook on Monday.

The 31-year-old — who last year skied down K2 — was making a rare attempt to summit the world’s tallest mountain and then ski down without supplemental oxygen.

But a serac — a block of glacial ice — is hanging dangerously above the already treacherous Khumbu icefall that climbers have to cross to reach Camp 1.

Bargiel and other teams were waiting at the base camp hoping the serac — which he said is around 50 metres (165 feet) by 30 metres (98 feet)– would break off so they could pass.

“Walking underneath through the Icefall is extremely dangerous,” he posted on his Facebook page, adding he wouldn’t accept the risk.

“We are here for a long time, there is no progress and so no acclimatisation beyond base camp. We therefore have to finish our expedition, because that’s the most reasonable decision.”

The decision comes after another team abandoned its expedition last week, now leaving only a few climbers on the mountain.