Australian officials are helping the wife of an Adelaide man who was killed after an avalanche on the Chinese side of Mount Everest.
The 60-year-old man has been identified as Dean Higgins, from South Australia.
He had been on a trek with his wife Wendy, who was buried in snow for up to six hours, News Corp Australia reported.
A Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesman said officials from the Australian embassy in Beijing had been in contact with her and were providing consular assistance.
Chinese state media said three Tibetans also died in the avalanche.
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There are reports the Adelaide couple and two other tourists were in a group with the three Tibetan porters, two cooks and a tour guide in an off-limits area on the mountain.
Local government organised their rescue after getting a distress signal following the avalanche.
The ABC reported that Mr Higgins had managed to dig himself and his wife out of the avalanche, which struck on Tuesday. It reported the couple then took about eight hours to get to the bottom of the mountain, where Mr Higgins reportedly died.
The ABC quoted a family friend, Julie Mahony.
"They were under the snow for about six hours and Dean dug them out of the snow," she was quoted as saying.
"They had to get down the mountain to safety and that took approximately eight hours.
"We're not exactly sure what happened, but he was alive until they got down the bottom."
Chinese media reported Mr Higgins died "as a result of altitude sickness, poor health and age".
