What caused the avalanche that cause the horrible accident that killed the 11 K2 climbers?
Los Angeles-area mountain climber turned back before deadly K2 avalanche By Sue Horton, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer August 7, 2008 When Nicholas Rice awoke just before midnight July 31, he was confident that the next day he would stand on the summit of K2, the world’s second-highest mountain and the most challenging to climb. The forecast was for good weather, and after some earlier health issues, Rice was feeling strong. The 23-year-old climber from Hermosa Beach planned to climb K2 as he had other Himalayan peaks, alone and without supplemental oxygen. In his tent at camp four, a staging ground for summit attempts located 8,000 meters up the mountain in the so-called “death zone,” he began the tedious job of melting snow on a small stove. He knew it would take more than an hour to melt the two liters he would need for his climb, but just as he had finished melting the first panful of water, he spilled it, soaking his socks, and delaying his start for two hours. The delay probably
