尼泊爾聖母峯發生雪崩至少九人遇難

An avalanche on Nepal's Mount Everest has killed at least nine local guides. Several other guides were rescued while others are still missing.

An official with Nepal's Tourism Ministry said all the dead were Sherpa guides working on the mountain in preparation for the start of climbing season.

The official said the avalanche occurred at around 6:30 a.m. ((0100 UTC)) Friday in an area called the "popcorn field."

The major avalanche is the first of the climbing season at the world's highest peak.

Thousands of climbers have scaled the mountain since Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay completed the first ascent in 1953. Nearly 250 people have died.尼泊爾聖母峯（即珠穆朗瑪峯）發生雪崩，造成至少九名本地嚮導死亡，幾名嚮導獲救，還有幾人失蹤。

尼泊爾旅遊部一名官員說，所有遇難者都是舍爾巴嚮導，當時他們在爲即將開始的登山季節做準備。

這位官員說，雪崩發生在當地時間星期五早上6點30分左右，地點是一個被稱爲“爆米花田”的區域。

這是世界第一高峯今年登山季節首次發生大雪崩。

自埃德蒙·希拉利和丹增·諾爾蓋於1953年首次征服這座山峯以來，已有數千人成功登頂。將近250人在攀登過程中遇難。