KATHMANDU — Famous Swiss climber Ueli Steck, popularly known as the Swiss Machine for his rapid climbs, died on Sunday after falling to the foot of Mount Nuptse, Nepalese officials and expedition organizing company said.

It is the first death this spring in the region of Qomolangma — known as Everest in the West — according to Nepal's Department of Tourism, which issues permits for mountain climbing.

Steck, 40, was heading toward camp 2 from camp 1 of Qomolangma. The camp also serves as a base for climbing the 7,855-meter Nuptse, where he fell 1,000 meters to the foot of the mountain, according to Khem Raj Aryal of the department's mountaineering division.

Steck's body was taken to Lukla airport and then to Kathmandu by helicopter.

"His body now is being kept at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu for the postmortem," said Nivesh Karki, manager of Seven Summits Treks, which organized Steck's expedition.

Steck had received a permit to climb Nuptse on April 13 and had headed to the mountain on the same day. He had gone there with 14 others on his expedition team. There were two Swiss climbers including Steck and Nepalese Sherpa guides, according to the Seven Summits Treks.

Steck had won multiple awards for his speedy ascents. The climber had reached the summit of Qomolangma in 2012 without oxygen and in 2015 climbed all 82 Alpine peaks over 4,000 meters in 62 days.

The climber, who vowed never to return to Qomolangma after a fight with local Sherpa guides in 2012, was back in Nepal in 2013 to scale the 8,091-meter Mt Annapurna.

XINHUA