Nepal Avalanche Kills 7

An avalanche swept through a camp on Mount Yalung Ri in Nepal on Monday and killed five foreign climbers and two Nepali guides, officials said. Five other people were hurt at the base camp, located at 16,070 feet. The nationalities and identities of the foreign climbers were yet to be confirmed, reports the AP. Weather has been deteriorating since last week in Nepal, with snowstorms reported on the mountains. Rescuers were reaching the site on foot after a rescue helicopter was forced to turn back.

Mount Yalung Ri is an 18,370-foot peak, well short of Mount Everest's 29,032 feet. It is considered a mountain for beginners with no previous experience in climbing high mountains. Nepal is home to eight of the world's 14 tallest mountains, and spring is the most popular climbing season, when weather is favorable on those tall peaks. However, hundreds of foreign climbers come to climb smaller peaks during the autumn months between the rainy monsoon months and winter.