Everest gets deadly: private sector should manage it to improve safety

The world's highest mountain is experiencing one of its deadliest climbing seasons on record. Letting the private sector manage it would reduce overcrowding and improve safety

There will be two things that people remember about the 2019 spring climbing season on Mount Everest. The first is the death toll. As of Tuesday, it was 11. The second is a now-iconic image taken near the summit on May 22. In it, dozens of climbers are lined up on a ridge just below the peak, awaiting their chance to stand atop the world’s highest mountain. It'd be comical, except that the traffic jam occurred at a deadly, low-oxygen altitude.

The tragedy is that none of this is new. For years, overcrowding on Everest has been well documented. It's