22/05/2003

Marine on top of the world for Everest's 50th anniversary

At 0931 this morning Royal Marine Warrant Officer Dave Pearce and

Sherpa Chhring Dorje reached the summit of Mount Everest.

In a combined expedition, 10 climbers from the Royal Navy and Royal

Marines climbed the Mountain via the North Ridge to mark the 50th

anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary's first ascent. This is the first

time that the Royal Navy and Royal Marines have made such an attempt.

On reaching the summit, Dave Pearce hailed the achievement as a

result of excellent teamwork from all members of the expedition.

He said: "A great team effort. I wouldn't be up here without them. It is

pretty grim though - I'm shrouded in cloud"

Further attempts on the summit have now been abandoned as the team

have shifted their efforts to helping a British climber from another

expedition who fell and broke his leg, and an Australian suffering

from frostbite and snow blindness; the injured men are now at Camp 6,

at an altitude of 8200 meters. The Royal Navy team are now leading

the effort to get the men safely off the mountain.

Congratulating the team on its success the Expedition patron, Admiral

Sir Jonathon Band, Commander in Chief of the Fleet, said: "This is a fantastic achievement by the whole of the Royal Navy team.

"The resilience and determination of their teamwork has enabled them

to reach the summit and now, quite correctly, they are putting all of

their efforts into assisting other climbers known to be in distress"

In April 2003 a team of ten Royal Navy and Royal Marines

personnel, with three support staff, embarked on a 2 month expedition

to climb the North East Ridge of Mount Everest.

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