I don't know about rationale, but, IIRC, a significant portion of the deaths are from sherpas. In a 2014 avalanche, out of the 16 fatalities, 14 were Sherpas.

I don't know about rationale, but, IIRC, a significant portion of the deaths are from sherpas. In a 2014 avalanche, out of the 16 fatalities, 14 were Sherpas. Regardless of the ratio of Sherpas-to-tourist deaths, almost every year a few Sherpas die performing the real dangerous work of running up and down the mountain making the climb manageable for the tourists, installing ladders and carrying oxygen to base camps and such. So for the tourist, the death rate is probably much lower, likely in line with other dangerous activities such as skydiving, base jumping or race car driving.