British mountaineer and guide ‘disappeared in the death zone’ after reaching the summit of Mount Everest

A British climber and his guide are missing from Mount Everest after an icefall fell on their group as they descended from the summit.

Daniel Paul Paterson, 40, and his guide, Pas Tenji Sherpa, 23, had apparently been at their wits’ end since reaching the summit of Everest around 4.40am on Tuesday. local time (just before midnight in the UK).

A Nepalese official at Everest’s base camp told The Times: “A ledge broke and washed several climbers, including Daniel and his guide, towards the Tibet side.”

The incident is said to have happened on the Hillary Step, a nearly vertical rock face near the summit, the newspaper reported.

The area is understood to be in the so-called “death zone” – the section of mountain above 8,000 feet where oxygen levels and air pressure are not sufficient to support human life for any length of time.

Mr Paterson is understood to be from Wakefield in West Yorkshire, where he runs a fitness company.

A team of six climbing guides was dispatched to search for the two missing men.

On Instagram, Mr Paterson documented his long trek through the Nepalese Himalayas to Everest Base Camp.

“The Himalayas are a special place,” he wrote on April 13, adding in a later post that he was “happiest in the mountains.”

His journey was followed avidly on Instagram by climbing enthusiasts around the world.

On May 7, he said he was “looking forward to a window at the top.”

In an Instagram post on May 14, he shared a video of himself arriving at Everest base camp by helicopter.

“The base camp is enormous (1.5 miles long) and this year is home to 415 climbers and all Sherpas/porters/kitchen staff/management,” he wrote.

“It’s literally a mini city at 5,364m high. It takes 8 days for trekkers to reach Everest Base Camp and it is 32 miles from Lukla. Porters, mules, yaks and helicopters bring it all to this tent city that caters to everyone who stays here. A logistical masterpiece.”