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Search operation to locate 7 climbers missing after Broad Peak avalanche resumes

GILGIT: A search and rescue operation to locate seven climbers part of a 10-member team that went missing after an avalanche at Broad Peak earlier this week resumed on Saturday morning.

The operation was suspended late Friday due to adverse weather conditions in the region.

The bodies of three climbers — Oman’s Nadhira Ahmed Abdullah Al Harthy, Nepal’s Pur Bahadur Gurung and American Mallory Geis — were found on Friday and airlifted to Skardu.

The missing climbers include five from Nepal, including renowned mountaineer Nirmal Purja, Kili Pemba Sherpa, Nima Sherpa, Nawang Thindu Sherpa and Gyalu Sherpa. Pakistan’s climber Sohail Sakhi and China’s Wang Zhong are also among those missing.

According to the local administration, a three-member civil rescue team, led by renowned mountaineer Sarbaz Khan, was taking part in the search and rescue operation.

The team started their ground mission again on Saturday morning to locate the seven missing climbers. Additionally, Nepali climbers present at the basecamp with other expedition teams were also taking part in the operation.

Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP) President Major General Irfan Arshad told Dawn that the search operation was underway at Broad Peak. He said Pakistan Army helicopters were also heading towards the area where the climbers went missing.

The club’s general secretary, Ayaz Shigri, also told Dawn that the rescue operation was being carried out with support of army helicopters.

He said that during the operation the rescue teams had identified the presence of more climbers at an altitude of 6,000m through drone footage.

“Mountain terrain, adverse weather, snow avalanche risks and snowfall create difficulties for rescue team members,” he said.

According to Nepali media, renowned Nepali mountaineer Mingma David Sherpa arrived in Pakistan to assist the search and rescue operation. David travelled from Nepal to join the ongoing efforts to locate Purja and the other missing climbers.

The avalanche struck while the mountaineers were on a mission to summit Broad Peak (8,047 metres, 26,400 feet) on Thursday while the team was ascending at an altitude of around 6,600 metres, according to regional authorities.

The team was last in contact on Thursday morning, an official statement said, with reports emerging that evening of the powerful avalanche.

“Data from their tracking devices indicates that they were thrown hundreds of metres down the mountainside,” Naila Kiani, from Pakistan’s Alpine Club, told Le Monde newspaper.

Additional input from AFP



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