A Sherpa guide, previously presumed dead by his family after disappearing on Mount Everest, has been found alive in a remarkable turn of events. Against all odds, he endured nearly a week on the planet’s highest mountain without food, water, or supplemental oxygen, an ordeal rescuers have described as “nothing short of a miracle.”
Dawa Sherpa, aged 52, went missing on May 29 while descending from Everest. He had been guiding a Polish climber and had chosen to turn back before reaching the summit. While his client successfully returned to base camp, Dawa did not, leading to fears of his demise.
On Thursday morning, a cleanup crew from the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee discovered him crawling through the perilous Khumbu Icefall, one of Everest’s most hazardous stretches, just above base camp. Pemba Sherpa of 8K Expeditions confirmed the dramatic find to The Associated Press.
After his rescue, Dawa was provided with food and water before being airlifted to a hospital in Kathmandu. There, he was reunited with his wife and daughter, who had been anxiously awaiting his return.
Medical personnel promptly attended to Dawa Sherpa upon his arrival at HAMS Hospital in Kathmandu on June 4, 2026, following his extraordinary survival in the Everest region. (Niranjan Shrestha/AP)
By that point, his family had already lost hope.
His teenage daughter, Mendo Lhamu Sherpa, told the outlet that relatives were in the middle of funeral rites when news of the rescue broke.
“When we first heard about it (the rescue), we could not be sure if that person was indeed our father,” she said. “So to be certain we asked for photos to be sent and then only we were sure and very happy.”
Medics take Dawa Sherpa, a mountain guide who had been missing for several days in the Everest region, for treatment after he arrived at HAMS Hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal, on June 4, 2026. (Niranjan Shrestha/AP)
His wife, Damu Sherpa, added that the family learned he was alive through local news reports and phone calls from friends.
“We first heard that he was still alive on the local news and from a person we know who called with the news that … he is being brought down,” she said.
Dawa was still wearing his climbing jacket when rescuers found him. His family said he is being treated for frostbite and other complications but is conscious and able to speak.
“He recognized me … is good and speaks,” his daughter told Reuters. “We are happy.”
The Nepal Mount Everest hiking company called his survival extraordinary.
“Dawa survived alone for nearly a week without food, water, or supplemental oxygen navigating the treacherous Khumbu Icefall (even after the fixed ladders were removed for the season),” the company said in a social media post. “This is nothing short of a miracle.”
Tents are set up at Everest Base Camp in the Solukhumbu district, also known as the Everest region, Nepal, on April 13, 2026. (Purnima Shrestha/Reuters)
It was unclear how Dawa became separated from his client during the descent or why there was a delay in launching a search team when he went missing last week. Helicopters were eventually dispatched but failed to locate him.
His rescue came at the end of a record-breaking Everest climbing season. More than 1,000 climbers and guides reached the summit this year after Nepal issued a record 494 permits.
Officials have said five climbers and guides died on Everest during the season, according to Reuters.
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