The High Altitude Porters (HAPs) and Sherpas started to prepare fixed lines before midnight. They were joined by Spanish solo climber Alberto Zerain, who had come up from Camp III during the night and decided to continue his summit push early, rather than stay at Camp IV. The most experienced HAP, Shaheen Baig, had to go back down with symptoms of high altitude sickness. His experience as the only person in the collected teams to have previously summited K2, and his unofficial leadership of the HAPs and Sherpas, was sorely missed. Some confusion followed and ropes may have been left behind or placed too far down the slope from the Bottleneck.