Midleton group on trek to Everest, then they found out their town was underwater

THE people of Midleton will forever remember where they were when they heard about their town suffering devastating flooding just over a fortnight ago.

Many were actually in the main street, looking on helplessly as their homes and businesses suffered catastrophic damage.

Other locals may have heard about it when they saw the shocking images of rising waters on their phones, or when a family member contacted them.

However, for ten members of the Midleton Hillwalking Club, on a trek of the Himalayas, the news that the town was underwater took days to seep through, and the devastation only began to sink in when they arrived at their final destination - Everest Base Camp.

“We did not hear for two days as we were unable to get WiFi as we climbed,” said Helen Baverstock, chairperson of Midleton Hillwalkers Club. “It was shocking for all affected.”

For one member of the club, the natural disaster struck close to home, as his son had to move out of his flood-damaged home.

“That made us realise the seriousness of what was happening back home,” said Helen.

“But we were also heartened by stories of the people offering to help out and the community rallying together at such a difficult time.”

There are around 150 members of Midleton Hillwalking Club, and ten of them opted to head to the Himalayas for the fortnight trip in October.

An active group, they do plenty of walks and treks around Cork and Munster, and toured the Pyrenees in the summer.

The trip to Everest Base Camp, though, was to be the most arduous experience ever for the members.

The words ‘base camp’ make it sound like it is merely the start of the journey up the world’s highest mountain, but in fact getting to it is a gruelling challenge and an exhausting trek in itself.

The Midleton group spent eight days scaling the 5,364 metres to Base Camp and finally arrived there on Saturday, October 21.

To give an idea of how high up in the clouds they were, that is around five times higher than Carrauntoohil, Ireland’s highest peak!

It was while they were closing in on the camp that the group began to hear snippets of the calamity that had begun unfolding in their own ‘base camp’ - back home in East Cork.

Midleton’s main street and many outlying areas had been submerged the previous Wednesday. The images and information they were seeing must have taken on a surreal tone as the group completed their climb to Everest base camp.

The time difference also meant news of the flooding in Cork only began to get through gradually.

So, there they were, 5,364 metres above sea level, and the town they had left had found itself suddenly, and alarmingly, sinking below sea level. I put it to Helen that it must have been a surreal experience.

“We just thought, thank God nobody was injured or hurt,” she said. “That made it easier to absorb, but so much damage was done.

“We were reading social media and newspaper reports of homes and their contents being washed away, and many people unable to get flood insurance.

“It was just desperate to read, I don’t think people still realise how bad it was.”

Once they had reached base camp, the club members were unable to go higher because you need a special permit to take on Everest itself - some of the group were also feeling the effects of altitude sickness.

But a few did decide to wake up at 4am in -17C temperatures to walk to an area where they could view an unforgettable sunrise over Mount Everest.

I heard about the Midleton’s club’s remarkable experience when Helen sent me a photo for this year’s Holly Bough Picture Gallery of the ten club members at Everest Base Camp, and I realised their trek had coincided with the worst flooding of their town in living memory.

The hillwalking club flew home earlier this week, and when Helen visited Midleton, she was shocked all over again when she saw the flooding damage with her own eyes in broad daylight.

“I couldn’t believe the devastation. Shops closed and stock damaged. Skips on the road, full with furniture. I couldn’t believe Supervalu being closed.”

One positive has been the support Helen has witnessed in Midleton, and the rallying together. “There is so much support, it is good to see it,”

She says the community is still coming to terms with the devastation and it is too early to suggest a coherent plan on how to prevent it happening again. “But something has to be done,” added Helen.

One bitter irony was for the Midleton hillwalkers to hear their local Nepalese guide in the Himalayas talking about his own experience of global warming, while Midleton was suffering its very own episode of it 7,700km away.

“The guide recalled snow being on the mountains where now it had melted,” said Helen.

She had been to the Nepal region on a previous walking trip four years ago, and had noticed herself how little snow there was compared to then.

Helen says that Midleton Hillwalkers Club, which was founded in 2005, is a great group of people.

“It is a very friendly club,” she said, “everybody helps everyone else and nobody is left behind.”

For more information about the club, see https://www.midletonhillwalkers.com/