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Outside of questions tied to health, travel restrictions would have dramatically altered Everest's environment for this climbing season, typically from April to May, with peak times for summiting in mid- to late-May. While 2019 was an especially deadly Everest season due to overcrowding and inexperienced climbers, 2020 was looking to be \"very special,\" Lukas Furtenbach of Furtenbach Adventures told ABC News last week, as fewer people would have made it to base camp.

Many would-be Everest climbers had already canceled their trips, either because they're from countries like China, South Korea and Italy, which have been hard-hit and are facing travel restrictions, or because they're fearful of travel.

Furtenbach had initially moved his expedition from the north side of Everest to the Nepal side, citing logistical challenges and the possibility of a trip having to be extended due to quarantines. However, with Nepal's announcement, he's now out of options.

\"This is disappointing news for both our expedition leaders and our clients who have trained for months for this year’s climb,\" he said in a statement following Nepal's announcement.

\"[People] think summiting Everest comes down to whether they climb well at altitude or not on summit day,\" Ballinger said. \"But what I've learned over all these years is actually being successful on Everest has to do with so much more than just walking uphill on summit day, it's the politics and health and random failures of equipment because the environment is just so harsh on us. And I kind of love that. Everest is still not easy.\"

Tune into ABC News Live at noon ET every weekday for the latest news, context and analysis on the novel coronavirus, with the full ABC News team where we will try to answer your questions about the virus.

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