ISLAMABAD — Ten climbers, including renowned British-Nepali mountaineer Nirmal Purja, were killed after an avalanche swept through an international expedition on Broad Peak in northern Pakistan, the Alpine Club of Pakistan and Purja’s expedition company said.
The avalanche struck the 8,047-metre mountain in the Karakoram range on July 30, cutting communication with all 10 members of the expedition. Search teams subsequently recovered the bodies as difficult weather and hazardous terrain hampered rescue operations.
The Alpine Club identified the climbers as Purja, Pakistani mountaineer Sohail Sakhi, Omani climber Nadhira Ahmed Abdullah Al Harthy, American Mallory Geis, Chinese climber Wang Zhong and Nepalese climbers Pur Bahadur Gurung, Kili Pemba Sherpa, Nima Sherpa, Nawang Thindu Sherpa and Gyalu Sherpa.
Purja, widely known as “Nims Dai”, gained international recognition in 2019 after climbing all 14 of the world’s peaks above 8,000 metres in a record time. His achievement was later featured in the Netflix documentary “14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible.” At the time of his death, he was pursuing further high-altitude climbing objectives.
Pakistan Army helicopters and ground teams took part in the recovery effort. Poor weather repeatedly restricted helicopter operations, forcing rescuers to continue the search on foot in sections of the mountain. By early August, several bodies had been recovered and taken toward Skardu for further processing.
The Alpine Club said the recovery operation was technically difficult because of the altitude, avalanche debris and weather conditions. Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar expressed condolences to the victims’ families and said authorities were coordinating with the embassies of the countries whose nationals were involved.
Broad Peak is the world’s 12th-highest mountain and is one of 14 peaks exceeding 8,000 metres. Its location in the remote Karakoram, combined with steep terrain, avalanches, falling ice and rapidly changing weather, makes high-altitude climbing particularly hazardous.
The deaths were confirmed after search teams located the remains of all 10 climbers. Recovery and arrangements for the repatriation of the victims were being coordinated with their respective governments and diplomatic missions.
