Ten mountaineers, including world-renowned climber Nirmal “Nims Dai” Purja, are feared missing after a powerful avalanche struck Broad Peak in Pakistan’s Karakoram mountain range. The avalanche hit at around midday on Thursday on the 8,047-metre peak, one of the world’s 14 mountains above 8,000 metres. There has been no communication with the expedition since the incident.
Purja, a Nepal-born former Royal Marine, was leading an international expedition comprising an American, a Chinese national, an Omani and five Nepali climbers. He is globally recognised for climbing all 14 peaks above 8,000 metres in just over six months in 2019, setting a world record.
Search and rescue operations are expected to begin on Friday as soon as weather conditions allow. Pakistan’s army has deployed two helicopters to support the mission, while Nepali media reports that two bodies have been recovered, though officials have yet to confirm their identities.
The incident has sent shockwaves through the global mountaineering community as rescuers race against time to locate the missing climbers.
