The High of Mount Everest and the Lows of Human Behavior

I guess for people who have a dream of climbing Mount Everest, nothing else--not even a person dying--can keep them from their goal (Hat Tip: Ann Althouse). I say that's pitiful. It reminds me of the French tragedy when thousands of elderly died of heatstroke when their kids and the government went on vacation in the month of August. What do you think--would you pass a dying man by to reach the top of a mountain or leave the elderly to die so you could have a vacation?