Body of fourth Israeli hiker recovered from Nepal disaster

The body of a fourth Israeli hiker has been recovered in Nepal after a deadly snowstorm killed dozens of tourists out trekking last week. 

Michal Cherkasky’s body was found along the scenic Annapurna Circuit, a 140-mile route through the tenth highest mountain in the world. Cherkasy, 36, was found in the Thorong Pass, one of the highest sections.

News of the find came from Chabad emissary to Nepal Chani Lifshitz, and was later confirmed the Israeli Foreign Ministry. 

Israeli hikers Tamar Ariel, Nadav Shoham, and Agam Luria were earlier confirmed to have been killed in the blizzard and ensuing avalanche.

With dozens dead and several hundred rescued, the disaster is one of the worst to hit the region, where thousands of tourists head every October, when the monsoon rains clear and the weather is usually at its best for trekking. 

This week, Nepalese officials confirmed that there were no plans to retrieve some of the bodies, believed to be those of Nepalese porters, because they were at an altitude of 5,100 metres, or 16,730 feet, and the steep terrain made it impossible for helicopters to land.

So far, people from Canada, India, Israel, Slovakia, Poland and Japan have been killed alongside several Nepalese, some of whom were local yak herders.