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GILGIT: Four bodies were found on Friday as a search operation was underway to locate climbers, including renowned Nepali mountaineer Nirmal Purja and Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi, who went missing on Broad Peak a day earlier after an avalanche struck around midday.
The Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP) said that the 10-member team included six Nepalese climbers, a Pakistani, an Omani, an American and a climber from China. The climbers from Nepal were identified as Purja, Pur Bahadur Gurung, Kili Pemba Sherpa, Nima Sherpa, Nawang Thindu Sherpa and Gyalu Sherpa. It identified the remaining climbers as Nadhira Ahmed Abdullah Al Harthy from Oman, Sakhi from Pakistan, Wang Zhong from China and Mallory Geis from the United States.
ACP President Major General Irfan Arshad told Dawn that four bodies had been found. He identified two of the dead as Oman’s Nadhira Ahmed Abdullah Al Harthy and Nepal’s Pur Bahadur Gurung.
In a statement issued earlier in the day, ACP Senior Vice President Karrar Haidri said two Pakistan Army Aviation rescue helicopters, carrying rescue personnel and additional specialised equipment, had been dispatched to support the ongoing search and rescue operation.
