Climbers need food. They also need shelter from the extreme cold. Everything must be carried up the mountain.

The Sherpas do this difficult work. And they also help other people climb the mountain. Sherpas are expert climbers, guides, guards and coaches. Also, they are brave enough to do dangerous work.

Early in the morning on April 18 hundreds of Sherpas were climbing up Mount Everest. They walked through snow and ice. They carried heavy packs on their backs.

Everything was quiet. Suddenly, a huge block of ice fell off the side of the mountain. This piece of ice weighed over 60,000 tonnes.

As it fell down the mountain, the ice broke into pieces. Huge, sharp pieces of ice and snow raced down the mountain, creating an avalanche.

This avalanche was full of dangerous pieces of ice. The avalanche hit or buried everything that it passed. The Sherpas on the mountain heard the snow and ice above them. Some found shelter. Then, the avalanche crashed right over them.

Many Sherpas do not like doing such a dangerous job. But they live far from the city. Climbing is one of the only ways that Sherpas have to make money.

Mostly, they support their families and pay for education. If they can, Sherpas send their children to boarding schools - away from their hometowns.

It is important to Sherpa parents that their children get an education. Then they will not have to do such dangerous work when they are adults.

The Nepali government agreed to give the Sherpas and their families insurance with more protection after an accident.

People around the world also responded to the terrible accident. They raised almost a million dollars. They gave it to the families of the Sherpas who had died.

This money does not replace a lost father, son or husband. But it creates some hope for the future, after a year of sadness on the world's highest mountain.