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Mrs South Africa, Nicole Capper, has been airlifted off Mount Everest to a hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal, after falling ill with altitude sickness.

Capper had just reached Everest Base Camp as part of her mission to raise money for Rare Diseases SA, as her daughter Tatum suffers from cystic fibrosis. She was planning to summit two nearby peaks at slightly higher altitudes after reaching Base Camp, but had to be emergency airlifted off the mountain, according to her fellow climber Sarel Nong.

 

The Mrs SA Pageant official Twitter feed confirmed the news, and said Capper is in a stable condition in hospital.

Capper’s mission to Everest was inspired and motivated by her daughter Tatum’s illness, and intended to raise funds for Rare Diseases SA. This organisation provides information, support and community for people suffering from rare diseases and undergoing difficult and expensive treatments.

“I want to climb every step for those who can’t, take every breath for those who can’t, and experience the outdoors like some can only dream of,” Capper said.

She said it was a dream come true when she made it to Base Camp over the weekend. “I stood there with a team of trekking warriors beside me, and a team of #RareWarriors in my heart.”

EVEREST BASE CAMP We DID IT!!!!!! As a team. Yesterday we completed the trek to Everest Base Camp. 5364m. It was a dream come true, and I stood there with a team of trekking warriors beside me, and a team of #RareWarriors in my heart. Thank you for being part of this journey. And for being part of my team. You all make me brave. Thank you to each and every kind soul who donated towards making @rarediseasessa patients’ lives better. You are phenomenal ❤??? Thank you to my generous sponsors for getting me to #RareHeights: @mandy.peacock @brayfoil #BodyRevivalInstitute . . . #everestbasecamptrek #everestbasecamp We made it to base camp on the day of #winniemandela’s memorial, and so we remembered the mother of our nation.

A post shared by Nicole Capper Ⓒ (@_nicolecapper) on

Capper and her team departed from South Africa two weeks ago. She was going to be hiking together with mountaineer and motivational speaker Sibusiso Vilane, who was going to attempt his third summiting of Everest – this time without oxygen.

The team took care to acclimatise on their way up the mountain, and Capper documented their progress on her Instagram page. She mentioned she was feeling ill a week ago, and also wrote that she was struggling to be far away from her daughter, who was suffering from a particularly bad spell with her cystic fibrosis and needed to go on more medication. But a few days later, Capper was preparing for the final ascent to Base Camp and said she had “never felt more alive”.

 

 

Picture: Instagram

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