For the first time in two years, foreigners have reached the top of the world's tallest mountain, Everest, following disaster and tragedy that kept climbers from attempting the feat. Britons Kenton Cool and Robert Richard Lucas reached the 29,035-foot summit on Thursday along with Mexican David Liano and three Nepalese guides. On Wednesday, nine Sherpa guides also summitted Mount Everest.
The mountain has been plagued in recent years by tragedy; in 2014, 16 sherpas were killed by an avalanche and last year, the earthquake in Nepal killed at least 18 climbers and guides. While one Chinese woman did technically make an ascent in May 2014, she did so with the aid of a helicopter and thereby disqualified herself in the eyes of many climbers, who saw her actions as a violation of their code. Nearly 700 people summitted Everest in 2013.
For Cool, it was his 12th time reaching the top of Everest and he told his wife "the summit has never looked more beautiful."