At least 12 are dead after an avalanche occurred Friday on Mount Everest. Four more are missing in what is being called the worst-ever disaster on the mountain.

Peak season for those looking to climb the mountain, the highest peak in the world, is just days away.

The 12 dear are Sherpa guides attempting to help climbers with their ropes early Friday morning.

Four survivors were taken to a hospital in Katmandu and other survivors were treated right on the mountain.

Twelve bodies were pulled out from mounds of snow and ice by rescue workers. The workers are still looking for four more missing guides.

The avalanche occurred in an area nicknamed the "popcorn field" because of its bulging chunks of ice. It's located just below Camp 2 according to Ang Tshering of the Nepal Mountaineering Association. Camp 2's elevation is 21,000 feet.

Among the survivors was Dawa Tashi, a guide who was in intensive care unit at Grande Hospital in Katmandu.

Tashi told relatives the story of the avalanche. He explained that Sherpas woke up early Friday morning to help climbers fix their ropes. But, the Sherpas got delayed due to an unsteady path and suddenly the avalanche hit, burying many of them.

The Sherpas and climbers are setting up camps and preparing for next month when the weather on Mount Everest will be at its best.

Sherpas are one of the main ethnic groups in Nepal's alpine region. Many of them earn a living as guides for mountain climbers on Everest.

Hundreds have died trying to climb Everest. In 1953, Edmund Hillary of New Zealand was the first to reach the peak.

This avalanche on Mount Everest is the worst-ever disaster on the deadly mountain. Eight died in a 1996 snowstorm and six guides died in a 1970 avalanche.

With the influx of climbers headed to Mount Everest this climbing season, Nepal announced earlier this year that they will have security personnel and officials at the base camp at 17,380 feet. They'll remain at that base camp until the end of the climbing season.