His Eight Fingers Amputated In 2007, This Veteran Mountaineer Successfully Reached The Peak Of Mount Everest

JAKARTA - Losing limbs did not prevent this climber from conquering the roof of the world, Mount Everest, although on that mountain he also experienced an incident that caused the loss of his fingers.

Most recently, this veteran climber was able to fulfill his desire to conquer Everest last May, fifteen years after he lost eight of his fingers.

Hailing from Malaysia, the climber named Ravichandran Tharumalingam recalls the expedition that tortured him in 2007. The man, who was 42 at the time, was very focused on climbing Mount Everest for the second time in two years.

It made him so euphoric, that it distracted him from the tingling sensation in his fingers. Previously, he made it to the top of the mountain for the first time in 2006.

Ravichandran or Ravi as he prefers to be called, has finally reached the top of the highest mountain in the world once again, but this time at a cost. The tips of eight of his fingers later had to be amputated due to frostbite.

"I believed it had to do with (prioritizing) desire rather than being rational. I was so desperate to prove a point, I pushed myself so hard that I ignored the pain in my fingers," he recalled, citing CNA May 28.

At that time, Ravi did not realize that his glove had been torn. It caused his fingers to open and be directly exposed to the intense cold.

"In my mind I wished the sensation in my fingers would go away as the temperature got warmer and the sun rose higher, but this never happened. My fingers couldn't recover," he said.

Fifteen years after that fateful event, Ravi, now 57, has returned to Mount Everest triumphantly. On May 5, Ravi reached the top for the third time in his life, and the first since his previous attempt disabled him.

Speaking to CNA via a virtual video interview from Kathmandu, the Malaysian climber described how his latest summit of Everest 'was the best moment' of his life.

Completing this year's expedition, a challenge he named Everest 3.0, was a chance to 'conquer the old demon,' he said.

"Every time you go back to places that made you feel dark in your mind, and (you) cope better with challenges, it gives you a brighter space and a brighter outlook," he says.

"Coming back to Everest this year, it gave me a clearer view of who I am and the confidence I have," he added.

Ravi, who also guides two other climbers this year, recalls how the last 20 to 30 steps to the summit gave him a "good sense of accomplishment and satisfaction."

He made the climb with one of his clients, fellow Malaysian N Elanghovan (64), who made his first attempt to climb Mount Everest.

Ravi described this year's expedition as smooth, as his two clients and he took less than a month to complete. Previous attempts in 2006 and 2007 took between 45 and 60 days.

He was also grateful for the good weather, and his team took advantage of the relatively low winds to propel their peak.

"The only thing that has bothered me this year is that I feel frostnip on the front of my finger (cut off). Some of my fingers are still swollen and I believe this is due to cold, exposed tissue and bone," he added.

The discomfort he felt in his severed fingers prompted him to complete his ascent on supplemental oxygen. Initially, Ravi planned to climb Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen this year.

Supplemental oxygen is commonly used by climbers at higher altitudes, as it helps prevent hallucinations and pulmonary edema due to the dangerously thin air.

"I made a good decision. Installing oxygen was the right move. I learned from the mistakes on the previous trip," he said.

When asked about his future climbing plans, Ravi said he was already gearing up for Everest 4.0, and had taken to Facebook to persuade climbers to sign up with his team to the summit of Mount Everest in 2023.

However, he said he had to first see a doctor in Malaysia to "perform a proper amputation" of his severed eight fingers (four fingers of both his left and right hand).

He explained that based on consultations with doctors in Nepal after his recent ascent, he had difficulty with frostnip because the bones in his severed fingers were exposed.

"I was willing to go through this painful process again, to remove the tissue, grind the exposed bone, pull back the tissue and sew it up," Ravi said.

"I will lose a few more millimeters of each finger, but I believe that after the amputation process, I will be able to accept the challenge of climbing without supplemental oxygen next year."

"I believe every human being will face his own setbacks. I happened to lose a finger," concluded Ravi, adding that the process of overcoming setbacks made him stronger.