US Mountaineer, Local Guide Dead after Avalanches Hit Tibetan Mountain

Tourists walk by a woman wearing Tibetan costume posing for a photo at the thousand-household Tibetan village, one of the tourism spots in Litang county, Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of southwestern China's Sichuan province, Friday, Sept. 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Tourists walk by a woman wearing Tibetan costume posing for a photo at the thousand-household Tibetan village, one of the tourism spots in Litang county, Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of southwestern China's Sichuan province, Friday, Sept. 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
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US Mountaineer, Local Guide Dead after Avalanches Hit Tibetan Mountain

Tourists walk by a woman wearing Tibetan costume posing for a photo at the thousand-household Tibetan village, one of the tourism spots in Litang county, Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of southwestern China's Sichuan province, Friday, Sept. 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Tourists walk by a woman wearing Tibetan costume posing for a photo at the thousand-household Tibetan village, one of the tourism spots in Litang county, Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of southwestern China's Sichuan province, Friday, Sept. 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

American mountaineer Anna Gutu and a Nepalese guide Mingmar Sherpa were confirmed Sunday dead after avalanches struck the slopes of a Tibetan mountain, while two others remained missing, according to Chinese media reports.
The avalanches struck Tibet’s Mount Shishapangma on Saturday afternoon at 7,600 (24,934 ft) and 8,000 meters (26,246 ft) in altitude, according to state-owned Xinhua News Agency.
Two others, American climber Gina Marie Rzucidlo and a Nepalese mountain guide Tenjen Sherpa went missing, the news agency said.
The avalanches also seriously injured Nepalese mountain guide Karma Geljen Sherpa, who was escorted down the mountain by rescuers and is currently in stable condition.
A total of 52 climbers from various countries including the US, Britain, Japan, and Italy were attempting to summit the mountain when the avalanches hit, Xinhua said.
Climbing activities have since been suspended due to snow conditions.
Shishapangma is the 14th-highest mountain in the world, at over 8,027 meters (26,335 ft) above sea level.



Japan Post to Stop Delivery of Live Reptiles 

A monitor lizard looks out under a hut at the Sungei Buloh Wetlands Reserve in Singapore on January 15, 2025. (AFP)
A monitor lizard looks out under a hut at the Sungei Buloh Wetlands Reserve in Singapore on January 15, 2025. (AFP)
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Japan Post to Stop Delivery of Live Reptiles 

A monitor lizard looks out under a hut at the Sungei Buloh Wetlands Reserve in Singapore on January 15, 2025. (AFP)
A monitor lizard looks out under a hut at the Sungei Buloh Wetlands Reserve in Singapore on January 15, 2025. (AFP)

Japan Post will not deliver live reptiles starting from April on animal welfare grounds, a company spokeswoman said Wednesday.

Customers had raised concerns and animal rights activists had criticized the service online, the spokeswoman for the nationwide postal service told AFP.

"After consulting with the government... we came to realize that shipping animals in an environment where temperature control and food are unavailable can amount to animal abuse," she said.

From April 1, Japan Post -- which already does not allow mammals or birds to be sent by mail -- will not deliver reptiles through any parcel or other postal services, the spokeswoman added.