Cyber Reports of Mountain Tragedy Monday, October 11, 1999 Published at 12:55 GMT 13:55 UK Only two days after a massive avalanche in Tibet claimed the lives of world-renowned alpinist Alex Lowe and cameraman Dave Bridges, surviving team members are posting reports on the Internet from the mountainside. The seven remaining members of the 1999 American Shishapangma Ski Expedition have posted reports that their dead team mates "are locked in the ice within eyesight of us and there is nothing we can do about it.” The bulletins on MountainZone.com poignantly bring together the two worlds which one of the dead men, Alex Lowe, pioneered. The 40-year-old American alpinist, from Bozeman, Montana, made numerous first ascents, and was well known for his use of the Internet to broadcast his adventures and achievements. It also gained him sponsorship and a worldwide cyber following. Dave Bridges, 29, of Aspen, Colorado, was one of three cameramen documenting the expedition to the world's 14th highest mountain, which would have involved the team skiing back down again. He was also a USA national paragliding champion and an experienced mountaineer. Team leader Andrew McLean described a "massive avalanche" which struck the upper slopes above the base camp on 5 October. It buried and killed the two men. He reported on October 7: "Hello Mountain Zone, this is Andrew McLean calling from ABC on Shishapangma. We've had a rough couple of days. Roughly 30 hours ago on October 5, 1999, at about 9.20am Nepal time, tragedy struck our expedition. Alex Lowe, David Bridges and Conrad Anker got caught in the middle of an exposed slope by a massive avalanche that started about 6000 feet above them. Conrad survived with head and torso injuries, but after 20 hours of searching through one to 20 feet of debris we've given up on Alex and Dave as dead." His next report October 11, at 5.44pm Nepal time, reads: "It's been snowing on and off, so the tent floor is covered with mud, sand and bits of water-soaked paper. There are three days worth spilled coffee grounds, empty water bottles, dead batteries, plates of half-eaten food, wet socks, spent Gaz canisters, barf-stained sleeping bags and overlapping sleeping pads. Most of the talk is revolving around what to do next, what has happened, and where we are going to do in the next week or so. The unreal part of it is that two of our friends are buried in the ice within eyesight of us and there is nothing we can do about it. It's a very sad and frustrating experience." Team member Hans Saari adds: "Today we are heading back to Base Camp. The avalanche that hit 48 hours ago seems like a dream, but there are only seven of us now and that is the cruel reminder. Last night was somewhat therapeutic. We all stayed in the two-metre dome tent and told stories of our two friends until the wee hours of the morning. We can all feel the pressure from the media and .