On Thursday morning, an avalanche on Broad Peak in Pakistan swept away a group of ten international climbers. As of Friday afternoon, four climbers had been recovered dead, and six others were still missing – among them the exceptional Nepalese mountaineer Nirmal “Nimsdai” Purja.
What happened?
According to the Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP), an avalanche broke loose on Thursday, July 30, 2026, at approximately 9:30 a.m. local time between Camp II and Camp III of Broad Peak at an altitude of around 6600 meters. It swept away ten climbers belonging to different expeditions who were on the mountain at the same time. Contact with all those buried was lost immediately afterward.
Analysis of GPS trackers showed altitude losses of several hundred meters shortly after the event. The timing of the alarm is now being critically discussed: As ExplorersWeb reports, citing ACP representative Naila Kiani, the report of the accident only came in late in the evening – around thirteen hours after the avalanche. This meant that an entire daylight period passed, during which helicopters might still have been able to reach the scene.
Four fatalities, three of whom have been identified
A search and rescue team recovered four bodies from the base of the avalanche cone. Three of them have been identified: Omani mountaineer Nadhira Al Harthy, who in 2019 became the first woman from Oman to summit Everest; experienced Nepalese mountain guide Pur Bahadur Gurung, known as "Yukta"; and Kili Pempa Sherpa, known as "Kilu." The identity of the fourth victim has not yet been confirmed.
According to current information, six people from the group are still missing. The ten affected individuals include Purja, the Nepalese mountaineers Gyalu Sherpa, Nima Sherpa, and Nwang Thendu Sherpa, as well as the Pakistani mountain guide Sohail Sakhi, the American alpinist Mallory Geis, and the Chinese mountaineer Wang Zhong.
Search under difficult conditions
Bad weather initially prevented helicopter flights on Thursday; the first rescues were carried out via the land route to base camp. On Friday, two helicopters took off for an aerial search, carrying rescue equipment and oxygen.
The organizer, Karakoram Expedition, reported that a slight movement had been registered on the Garmin InReach device of a missing person – a possible but unconfirmed indication. According to Everest Today, however, local search teams no longer believe there are any survivors. The search is being significantly hampered by unstable snow conditions, steep terrain, and the difficult access to the accident site.
+ + +
Cover image: Adobe Stock