KATHMANDU, Nepal, May 27 (UPI) -- The Australian climber left for dead near the summit of Mount Everest spoke to his wife Saturday for the first time since his night in the open.
Lincoln Hall made the telephone call as soon as he arrived at Advance Base Camp, the Melbourne Herald-Sun reported.
"Hi, Barb, I'm OK," were his first words to the family waiting for him in New South Wales.
Hall collapsed Thursday on his way down from the summit. Members of his team decided that he was beyond help and left him, but a U.S. climber found him the next day still alive in spite of a night in the open, 28,275 feet up on the world's highest mountain.
Hall's team leader, Alexander Abramov, dispatched a group of Sherpas who helped him descend to the North Col camp. Abramov said Hall was still suffering from cerebral edema, but his health was improving as he moved down the mountain.
