EXCLUSIVE: Brooklyn native recalls terrifying moment on Mount Everest during Nepal quake

NEW YORK (PIX11) -- A Brooklyn native hiking in Nepal when a catastrophic earthquake struck the South Asian nation and triggered an avalanche on Mount Everest is sharing his story exclusively with PIX11 News about the terrifying moment when the 7.8-magnitude quake rocked the region.

Mendachem "Mendy" Losh, 38, originally from Brooklyn and now living in Newport Beach, Calif., was hiking with friend Daniel Cole, of Brooklyn, and on the glacier at the time of the earthquake.

"When it happened we were on some snow and we felt the ground move," Losh told PIX11 Tuesday.

Losh said at first, they thought it was just an avalanche.

"But then we looked up and we saw these boulders rolling down the mountain," he said. "So we went and dove behind the big rock."

Losh was traveling with Cole, a guide and a porter, at the time of the earthquake and said no one in their group was hurt.

"We didn't really think much of it, we were just in the wrong place at the wrong time," Losh said. "And everybody else was probably fine."

The pair were in the town of Gorak Shep when speaking with PIX11 News but were evacuated by helicopter to the town of Lukla. Losh said they'll take several helicopters until they get to Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal, to make the journey home.

The families of Losh and Cole reported the pair missing after the earthquake struck. After not hearing from them for three days, they finally received a message about 2:30 a.m. Monday that the pair was OK.

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