Rescue teams have found the bodies of four climbers after an avalanche hit a group on Broad Peak. Search efforts are still going on for the missing climbers.
Officials say the task is very hard because the area is remote and the weather is very bad on one of the tallest mountains in the world.
A big search and rescue mission is happening in Shigar district. An avalanche went through a group of climbers on Broad Peak, in the Karakoram mountains.
Ground rescue teams have found the bodies of four climbers. However, officials say the bodies have not been taken off the mountain yet. The names of the climbers are still being checked.
The local government says there are reports of four deaths so far. Rescue teams are still looking for the climbers who are missing. The locations where four climbers are located have been found. Teams are trying to get to them in the high-altitude area.
International expedition faces trouble while climbing
The international expedition team of 10 people was hit by an avalanche on Thursday around midday. This happened when they were going from Camp 2 to Camp 3 to try and reach the top of Broad Peak.
The climbers could not be reached after the avalanche. Even though people are trying to rescue them, the expedition team has not been able to communicate with anyone since then.
Broad Peak is a mountain in Gilgit-Baltistan. It is really 8,047 metres above the ground. That makes it the highest mountain in the world. Some people said it was 8,051 metres high because they were using different ways to measure it.
Nirmal Purja among climbers reported missing
The missing expedition includes world-renowned Nepal-born mountaineer Nirmal Purja, widely known as Nims Dai, a former British Army soldier and Royal Marine who made history in 2019 by climbing all 14 mountains above 8,000 metres in just over six months — a feat later documented in a 2021 Netflix film.
Purja, 43, began his climbing career after visiting Everest Base Camp in 2012 and later became one of the world’s most celebrated high-altitude climbers. He joined the British Army in 2003 before becoming a Royal Marine in 2009.
The expedition was led by Purja and included climbers from Nepal, Pakistan, China, Oman and the United States.
According to the Alpine Club of Pakistan, the missing climbers include Pakistani mountaineer Sohail Sakhi from Hunza, Chinese climber Wang Zhong, American climber Mallory Geis, Omani climber Ahmed Abdullah Al Harthy, and Nepali climbers Pur Bahadur Gurung, Kili Pemba Sherpa, Nima Sherpa and Nawang Thindu Sherpa.
Earlier reports also identified renowned Nepali mountaineer Mas Dai as the expedition leader, while international reports referred to him by his widely known name, Nims Dai (Nirmal Purja).
Omani climber confirmed dead
Rescue personnel said they used a helicopter to bring the body of climber Nadhira Al Harthy to Skardu.
They will use the helicopter to take the body of Nepali climber Pur Bahadur Gurung Sherpa to Skardu.
When the bodies get to Skardu, the officials will do the paperwork. After that, they will make plans to send the body of the Nepali climber to Nepal. The rescue people will make sure the body of Pur Bahadur Gurung Sherpa is taken care of and sent back to Nepal.
Sirbaz Khan spearheads rescue efforts
The search mission is being led by renowned Pakistani climber Sirbaz Khan, one of the few mountaineers in the world to have successfully climbed all 14 peaks above 8,000 metres.
Authorities have deployed two Pakistan Army Aviation helicopters to support the operation, subject to weather conditions. Rescue teams continue to work in a remote, dangerous section of Broad Peak where steep terrain and avalanche risks have slowed progress.
According to Seven Summit Treks board director Chhang Dawa Sherpa, the climbers’ last tracked location was at approximately 6,600 metres before they are believed to have been swept down the mountain by the avalanche.
Government and Alpine Club coordinate rescue efforts
The Alpine Club of Pakistan thinks what happened is very bad. They have been talking to the government and other people in charge since the avalanche happened.
The president of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, Irfan Arshad Khan, and other important people are working together to make sure helicopters and everything else they need are ready to go as soon as the weather is good enough.
The Alpine Club of Pakistan is trying really hard to find the climbers and make sure they are safe. The Alpine Club of Pakistan feels bad for the families of the climbers and for the people who like to climb mountains around the world, and they want to support them during this tough time.
Gilgit-Baltistan government pledges full support
The chief minister of Gilgit-Baltistan felt very sad about what happened. He told the people in charge to work harder to rescue everyone.
Gilgit-Baltistan Tourism Minister Nek Naam Karim said they are doing everything they can to find the missing climbers and bring them back safely.
He said the government of Gilgit-Baltistan is doing everything to help with the rescue and all the different departments like the government and the police are ready to help.
Karim said they are using every resource they have to make sure the rescue is successful and they are still trying to figure out who the missing climbers are.
Broad Peak is a hard mountain to climb in Pakistan and it attracts the best climbers from all over the world every year.
There are 14 mountains in the world that’re over 8,000 metres high and eight of them are in Nepal five are in Pakistan and one is in Tibet.
A few people have been able to climb all 14 of these mountains and rescue teams are still working to find the missing climbers while their families, in many countries wait to hear what happens to them.
