A 62-year-old American climber has died on Mount Everest, bringing the death toll this season on the world's highest peak to eleven.
Christopher Kulish "saw his last sunrise from the highest peak on Earth," his brother Mark Kulish said in a statement.
Mark Kulish said that his brother scaled Everest in nearly ideal weather after last week's crowds cleared, becoming a member of the "7 Summit Club" as he scaled the highest peak on each continent.
Christopher died early on Monday during the descent, his brother added.
Most of the climbers died while descending from the summit during only a few windows of good weather each May.
Most are believed to have suffered from altitude sickness, which is caused by low amounts of oxygen at high elevation and can cause headaches, vomiting, shortness of breath and mental confusion.
A 56-year-old Irishman died in his tent on Friday after turning back before reaching the summit, his Nepalese guide died on the same day after being airlifted to Everest's base camp.
A day later a British man died after returning from the summit while another Irish climber who went missing on May 16 is presumed dead on the mountain.
Three Indians - two women and one man - died last week during their descent after scaling the peak, as hundreds of climbers pushed for the summit while taking advantage of this week's weather windows.
Earlier this month, another US climber and an Indian climber also died during their descent. An Austrian climber died on the Tibetan side of the 8848-metre peak.
Babu Sherpa, the managing director of Peak Promotion, said overcrowding had congested the route from Camp IV to the top.
There are 41 teams with a total of 378 climbers permitted to scale Everest during the spring climbing season. An equal number of Nepalese guides help them get to the top.
Australian Associated Press
