The Death Zone: Climbing Everest Through the Killer Storm - Matt Dickinson

Death Zone recounts the devastating 1996 storm on Mount Everest, when ten expeditions from around the world were preparing for their attempts to reach the summit. Within just twenty-four hours, eight climbers had lost their lives in one of the deadliest disasters in Everest’s history. On the mountain’s North Face, British filmmaker Matt Dickinson and professional climber Alan Hinkes found themselves caught in the extreme conditions, yet managed to fight their way through hurricane-force winds and reach the summit.

Drawing on his own experience of surviving the storm as well as interviews with the climbers who lived through it, Dickinson reconstructs the events from both sides of the mountain. He describes the desperate struggles of the teams on the southern side, the fatal mistakes that led to the deaths of three Indian climbers on the North Ridge, and the tragic story of New Zealand guide Rob Hall, who remained with his stranded client and ultimately paid for his decision with his life.

More than an account of a mountaineering disaster, Death Zone examines the risks, decisions, ambitions, and human weaknesses at the heart of extreme climbing. Gripping and deeply personal, it is a powerful story of courage and endurance, but also of human error, tragedy, and the unpredictable forces of nature.