Nepal's tourism department is investigating after Hillary Dawa Sherpa, 57, was found alive six days after vanishing on Everest and his family filed a police complaint against Himalayan Traverse Adventure.
At about 7,500m on 29 May, Hillary Dawa says he ran out of oxygen and could no longer walk during the descent; he survived by chewing ice, escaping a crevasse and crawling down to the Khumbu Icefall.
The case has focused scrutiny on HTA because Hillary Dawa had been hired as a Camp 2 cook but was reassigned as a substitute guide for two clients who each paid about $37,500.
Clients Chris Thrall and Mariusz Chmielewski said severe whiteout conditions made rescue perilous, but Chmielewski alleges HTA was warned on 30 May and delayed a search for days.
HTA denies negligence and blames weather, while 8K Expeditions says HTA contacted it on 30 May, then became unreachable before a 2 June aerial search failed to find him.