A massive fire destroyed the Good Luck Hotel, one of the oldest hotels in Dingboche in Nepal's Solukhumbu district, on Friday morning, witnesses said. Dingboche, at an altitude of 4,410 metres in Ward 5 of Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality, is a popular acclimatisation stop for trekkers heading to Everest Base Camp. No casualties were reported.

Source: Everest Chronicle

The fire broke out in the hotel's kitchen at around 11:00 am and quickly engulfed the building, trekking guide Arjun Gurung, who was at the scene, told Everest Chronicle. Hotel owner Kul Bahadur Tamang said the main building of the 17-room hotel was completely destroyed and that all guests and staff were safely evacuated after the fire started in the kitchen.

Source: The Tourism Times

Police suspect cooking gas cylinder; cause not yet confirmed

Solukhumbu District Police Office chief DSP Nabin Raja Budhathoki said initial information suggested a cooking gas cylinder incident in the kitchen may have triggered the fire, with some reports describing a toppled cylinder or a possible explosion. The exact cause has not been independently established and remains under investigation. Gurung said the presence of several cooking gas cylinders in the kitchen, along with the lodge's wooden construction, made the blaze extremely difficult to control.

Source: Fish 4 News (Kathmandu Post / Nepal News reporting)

Local residents, police and hotel staff fought the flames for about two hours before the fire was brought under control, with some people throwing snow onto the burning debris amid heavy snowfall in the village, according to the reports.

Trekkers stranded by heavy snow

The fire came as heavy snowfall had already halted movement on the route. Trekkers in Dingboche told Everest Chronicle they could neither climb higher towards Lobuche and Gorakshep nor descend, and were waiting in the village for the weather to clear. Dingboche is one of the main accommodation stops on the Everest corridor, and the loss of one of its oldest lodges at the height of the autumn trekking season leaves fewer beds for stranded groups. Officials said a full assessment of the property damage is still being compiled.