Kenyan Cheruiyot Kirui who went missing on Mount Everest has been found dead. Kirui was found dead on Mount Everest’s Death Zone.

The death zone is a dangerous area near the summit of the mountain. By the time he was found dead, the whereabouts of a guide Nawang Sherpa who had reported earlier that he had behaved abnormally was unknown.

“With profound sadness, we share the news of Kenyan mountaineer Cheruiyot Kirui’s passing on Mt Everest. His body was found a few meters below the summit point of Mt Everest,” the Everest Today, which covers mountaineering over the Himalayas and Karakoram with a special focus on 8,000- metre peaks reported.

“He was on a daring mission to reach the summit without supplementary oxygen and was accompanied by a Nepali climber Nawang Sherpa, whose fate is still unknown (was missing with him). His indomitable will and passion for mountaineering will forever be an inspiration.”

Cheruiyot Kirui had on Wednesday been declared missing on Mt Everest. Kirui was last heard of at 8,000 metres on the world’s tallest mountain as he endeavored to reach the peak without supplemental oxygen.

Whereas this was daring undertaking by Kirui, a brief profile on him reveals that he has been engaging in various mountaineering activities. None, though, has been as challenging as Mt Everest whose elevation (snow height) is at an astonishing 8,848.86 meters  or 29,031 feet.

This mountain is located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point.

Reports indicate that Cheruiyot Kirui and his guide Nawang Sherpa were last seen at Bishop Rock. This was just meters from the summit. Nawarg Sherpa reportedly told Base Camp that Kirui was behaving abnormally before the duo went out of contact.

Who’s Cheruiyot Kirui, Kenyan missing on Mt Everest without oxygen support?

Kirui has been working professionally as a banker with KCB. A breakdown that was shared by journalist Kenny Kaburu, Kirui had previously summited Mt. Manaslu which stands at 8,163 metres without supplemental oxygen in September 2023. This made him the first African to achieve this feat on a peak above 8,000 meters.