A FUNDRAISING PAGE set up to raise money to help find climber and Trinity College professor Séamus Lawless has reached €180,000 in its first 24 hours online.

Séamus Lawless, an assistant professor at the university’s School of Computer Science, was one of four Irish people who climbed Mount Everest as part of a group called ‘Ireland on Everest’ this month.

The 39 year-old was reportedly part of an eight-member expedition led by Co Down climber Noel Hanna, with the Himalayan Times reporting that he went missing at an altitude of 8,300m after falling near a balcony area while descending after reaching the summit.

A sherpa told the same source that other climbers had already descended to Camp IV, but that the status of Séamus, who is originally from Bray, Co Wicklow, is still unknown.

A GoFundMe page was set up last night on behalf of Lawless’ family to raise funds to help find him.

“It is with an extremely heavy heart that the Lawless family have had to set up this GoFundMe page to ask for donations,” a statement on the page reads.

The page goes on the state that the insurance company that provided a policy for Lawless “are currently not providing assistance with the search and rescue”.

“The insurance company that had provided a policy for Séamus (Shay) are currently not providing assistance with the search and rescue.

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“Shay achieved his lifelong dream on the morning of Thursday 15th May when he reached the peak of Mount Everest.

Tragically, on his descent, Shay fell and has been missing since.

The page states that the family have “been left with no other option but to ask for assistance in raising funds to gather a team of expert Sherpas to locate and bring our beloved Shay home to Ireland”.

Time is of the essence in the search mission and the costs of running this mission are substantial.

The family state that they have no information on what happened to Séamus and do not know his location.

It is our priority to locate him and bring him home and we appreciate all the support that can be offered as we face this hugely challenging situation.

A vigil will be held for Séamus tonight from 8.15pm in the Trinity Long Room Hub.

“Together as a community who knows Shay for his spirit and kindness, his strength and his resilience, and above all for his dreams and visions, we want to light a candle together to not lose sight of the light itself and to carry our hopes and thoughts as far as only light can carry them,” a TCD spokesperson said.