Krakauer describes the events leading up to his eventual decision to participate in an Everest expedition in May 1996 , despite having mostly given up mountain climbing years before . The 1996 expedition season recorded eight deaths , including that of Krakauer 's guide Andy Harris . This was the third-highest recorded number of deaths on the mountain in a single day ; the April 2015 Nepal earthquake caused the most at 21
April 2015 Nepal earthquake
April 2015 Nepal earthquake
Into Thin Air