Nepal's devastating earthquake and avalanches may actually have made its mountains safer for climbers, New Zealand mountaineer Peter Hillary says.
Rescue team personnel carry an injured person towards a waiting rescue helicopter at Everest Base Camp. Photo: AFP
About 800 climbers were on Mt Everest when an avalanche triggered by last month's massive earthquake roared through Base Camp, killing at least 18 people.
The Nepalese government has said it will not close the mountain to climbers, although the route to the summit has been damaged.
However, many climbing firms have cancelled their spring expeditions to Mt Everest.
Mr Hillary, who was on Mt Everest when the earthquake struck, told Morning Report the risk may well have reduced.
"Very often, the conditions become even safer because all the dangerous material that was teetering up the ice fall or literally leaning out over the roofs in various places, great icy seracs that could have fallen down and damaged things, have fallen off."
Listen to the full interview with Peter Hillary