More than 1,000 foreign trekkers are stranded in the foothills of Mount Everest because bad weather has not allowed planes to take off or land at the area's only airport.

Police official Ramesh Khakda says about 1,200 foreign trekkers are stranded at and around Tenzing-Hillary Airport in Lukla, Nepal. There are several Nepalese guides and porters with the foreigners.

Small helicopters ferried some of the trekkers Friday, but bad weather was hampering the efforts. Thick fog has canceled flights at the airport, which sits at an altitude of 9,200 feet (2,800 meters), for the past four days. The stranded trekkers have been sleeping at the airport and in tents and dining halls at Lukla hotels.

Mount Everest, the world's highest mountain, peaks at 29,035 feet (8,850 meters).