1996 Mount Everest disaster occurred on 10 – 11 May 1996 , when eight people caught in a blizzard died on Mount Everest during attempts to descend from the summit . Over the entire season , 12 people died trying to reach the summit , making it the deadliest season on Mount Everest at the time and the third deadliest behind the 16 fatalities of the 2014 Mount Everest avalanche and the 22 deaths resulting from avalanches caused by the April 2015 Nepal earthquake . The 1996 disaster gained wide publicity and raised questions about the commercialization of Everest
April 2015 Nepal earthquake
April 2015 Nepal earthquake
1996 Mount Everest disaster