Renowned climber Nirmal Purja among ten killed in Broad Peak avalanche
Ten mountaineers, including famed climber Nirmal Purja, died after an avalanche struck Broad Peak in Pakistan’s Karakoram range.
A deadly avalanche hit Broad Peak, a 26,414-foot mountain in Pakistan’s Karakoram, resulting in ten confirmed fatalities. The expedition, organized by Elite Exped, was led by the celebrated British-Nepali climber Nirmal Purja, who had previously been featured in a Netflix documentary. Pakistani rescuers retrieved three bodies on Friday, including American Sarah Mallory Geis, before weather forced a temporary pause.
Search efforts resumed Saturday to locate the seven missing climbers from Pakistan, Nepal and China. The Alpine Club of Pakistan’s president, Irfan Arshad Khan, lamented the loss for the worldwide mountaineering fraternity, while British Defense Minister Wes Streeting praised Purja’s inspirational career.
Why it matters
The deaths of high-profile climbers underscore the extreme risks of high-altitude mountaineering and affect the international climbing community.
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