Climbers are filmed crushed together in a"human traffic jam" because they battle the elements in an effort to reach the summit of Mount Everest.
The movie, filmed by Instagram consumer Commando_Of_Mountain, reveals at least 50 climbers backed up behind each other as they wait in line to keep their scale to the 8850-meter peak. The short clip, which was posted on Tuesday, appears to show the massive group crushed against the ice as climbers before these make their way up towards the summit.
The stunning footage, which has been viewed more than 17,000 times, comes off the rear of a horror season on the planet's greatest mountain which has left at least 11 climbers dead in little over two weeks.
Experts say the problem stems from bad weather cutting the climbing window, leaving mountaineers waiting long queues to the summit in danger of fatigue and running out of oxygen.
The other issue is that the number climbers on the mountain, as the Nepalese government issued a record 381 permits to scale Everest this year despite a rising climber death toll.
Before this week, mountaineers clarified traffic jams caused by drowsy, inexperienced climbers from the"death zone," that the last stage of this ascent from Camp Four at 8000 metres to the 8850-metre peak.
But, Nepalese authorities minister Gokul Prasad Baskota said the congestion photo that went viral online wasn't due to the mismanagement of permits but rather the inadequate training of several climbers.
Renowned mountaineer Um Hong-gil, of South Korea, said the number of climbers should be scaled back and just those with appropriate training and expertise ought to be allowed.
"There should definitely be permits issued and more experienced climbers on Everest," Um said.
He explained the effort -- after just potential for well-heeled elite mountaineers -- has changed considerably since he first climbed Everest in 1988, in part due to innovative weather forecasting technology that more accurately predicts clear conditions, resulting in pile-ups at the summit.
"Many people these days are taking climbing Everest very lightly and as amusement only, they believe that they can perform without much training," Um explained.
Criticism of the amount of climbers hoping to conquer Everest came about on May 22 after a climber snapped a photograph from a line with heaps of hikers in vibrant winter gear that snaked to the sky.
The climbers were crammed crampon-to-crampon along a sharp-edged ridge over South Col, with a 2000-metre fall on each side, all clipped onto a single line of rope, trudging towards the very top of the world and denying passing as each minute ticked by.
The allure of scaling Everest has grown recently and so have the crowds. However, the number of inexperienced climbers faltering about the narrow passageway into the peak is causing fatal delays.
"There were people on Everest than there ought to be," Kul Bahadur Gurung, general secretary of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, told the Associated Press. Everest View Trek can be done easily without any risk to see the beautiful scenery of the Everest
"We lack the regulations and rules that say just how many people may really go up and if."
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In recent years, Mount Everest has faced overcrowding issues, often attributed to an increasing number of climbers attempting the summit simultaneously. This phenomenon creates dangerous bottlenecks, risking lives due to prolonged exposure to harsh conditions. Contact Quia for detailed insights into the challenges and management efforts on Everest, aiming for safer and more sustainable climbing experiences.