Legendary mountaineer Nirmal ‘Nims Dai’ Purja dies in Broad Peak avalanche
An avalanche struck Broad Peak (8,051m/26,414ft) in Pakistan’s Karakoram range on Thursday, July 30, leaving ten climbers missing on the mountain’s standard West Ridge route ExplorersWeb Alpinist Magazine Climbing Gripped Desnivel. By early August, rescue teams had recovered seven bodies, among them Nepali climber Nirmal Purja, while some climbers remained unaccounted for.
What happened Accounts agree the avalanche struck climbers between Camp II and Camp III on the West Ridge, though they diverge on altitude: ExplorersWeb put the strike at about 6,660 metres, Climbing at about 6,579 metres (21,580 feet), and Desnivel at about 6,600 metres [S1][S3][S5]. ExplorersWeb also noted the possibility that two separate avalanches occurred [S1]. GPS trackers carried by the climbers showed them halt their ascent and then fall several hundred metres; Alpinist reported several units went stationary above 7,800 metres afterward [S1][S2]. Individual tracking data varied sharply: Mallory Geis's device recorded a descent of 543 metres (1,784 feet), while Nadhira Al Harthy's showed a fall of 1,651 metres (5,417 feet), according to Climbing [S3]. Desnivel reported that, per Elite Exped, Purja's tracker appeared to keep showing movement for some time afterward [S5].
Accounts differ on timing. ExplorersWeb placed the avalanche around 9:20am Pakistan time, while the Alpine Club of Pakistan’s press release described it as occurring “around midday.” Climbing narrowed the window to between 8:57am and 9:30am, Desnivel reported 9:30am local time, and Alpinist described it as occurring “shortly before noon local time” ExplorersWeb Alpinist Magazine Climbing Desnivel. News was first carried by Everest Chronicle before being confirmed by the Alpine Club of Pakistan and by Mingma David Sherpa, co-founder of Elite Exped.
The people involved Four expedition teams were on Broad Peak at the time: Pakistani guide Sohail Sakhi with client Mallory Geis; Nirmal Purja leading an Elite Exped team; a group from Imagine Nepal, whose leader Mingma G was on K2 and not present; and a Seven Summit Treks party [S1]. Lists of the ten climbers varied between outlets. The Alpine Club of Pakistan named five Nepali mountaineers led by Purja, Sohail Sakhi, Omani climber Nadhira, American climber Mallory Geis, a Chinese climber identified as Mr Wang, and one further foreign climber [S1]. Desnivel listed Purja, Yukta Gurung, Nima Sherpa, Gyalu Sherpa, Nwang Thendou Sherpa and Kili Pemba Sherpa (all Nepali), Sohail Sakhi, Mallory Geis, Nadhira Al Harthy and Wang Zhong [S5]. Climbing described the group as Purja, Sohail Sakhi, five further Nepali guides, and three clients from China, Oman and the United States [S3]. Imagine Nepal said the group had reached Camp 2 on Wednesday, July 29, intending to move to Camp 3 on Thursday and attempt the summit on Friday [S1].
Purja, who co-founded Elite Exped and the Nimsdai Foundation, held the record for climbing all 14 of the world’s 8,000-metre peaks without supplemental oxygen, completed on October 4, 2024 Climbing. Climbing reported he had summited 8,000-metre peaks 57 times, including 29 without oxygen, and that Broad Peak was a late addition to his schedule as he pursued what Elite Exped called his “Hat-Trick Project,” a second round of all 14 peaks without oxygen, for which Cho Oyu (8,188m/26,864ft) would have remained his final summit. Purja himself said on social media he had originally planned to climb only Gasherbrum II but recalculated his tally and added Broad Peak ExplorersWeb.
Other named climbers included Mallory Geis, 39, a travel photographer and pilates studio owner from San Antonio, Texas, for whom Broad Peak was a first 8,000-metre attempt; Sohail Sakhi, a mountain photographer and drone pilot from Hunza Valley who had spoken publicly about pay inequity facing Pakistani guides; Nadhira Al Harthy, the first Omani woman to summit Everest, in 2019; Wang Zhong, a Chinese climber whose identity was confirmed in a July 31 statement from Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Nepali guides Pur Bahadur “Yukta” Gurung, Nima Sherpa, Kili Pemba Sherpa and Nawang Thendu Sherpa, each with extensive high-altitude records Climbing.
The response Naila Kiani of the Alpine Club of Pakistan said the Club was not informed of the avalanche until 10pm, nearly 13 hours after it struck, calling the delay shocking [S1]. ACP president Major General Irfan Arshad said he remained in contact with government authorities to coordinate search and rescue, including arranging helicopter support, and two helicopters carrying rescuers and oxygen were due to fly to Broad Peak the following day [S1]. Strong winds that began on the day of the avalanche continued to hamper high-altitude search efforts in subsequent days [S3][S5].
A July 31 statement from the Commissioner of Baltistan said rescuers had recovered three bodies: Pur Bahadur “Yukta” Gurung, Nadhira Al Harthy and Mallory Geis Climbing. Karakorum Expeditions separately reported four bodies found at the base of the avalanche, naming Al Harthy and Gurung among them Desnivel. Climbing reported four further bodies, Purja, Wang Zhong, Nima Sherpa and Kili Pemba Sherpa, were later brought down to Camp 1 at 5,600 metres, while one body spotted higher on the mountain was not retrieved because of the risk involved, and an amputated leg presumed to belong to one of the remaining climbers was recovered. Elite Exped confirmed Purja’s and Nima Sherpa’s deaths via Instagram on August 1 and said it had received word that other members had also died, prompting ACP president Irfan Arshad Khan to ask the company to stop releasing such information before rescuers physically reached the climbers. Gripped reported seven bodies recovered in total and that the recovery mission, led by Mingma Gyalje Sherpa, was described by the ACP as exceptionally challenging and technically demanding; the Club credited Pakistani climbers Sirbaz Khan, Abid Baig and Sherbaz, and Nepali climbers Dipen Gurung and Pemba Chhewang Sherpa, and thanked the Pakistan Army, the governments of Pakistan and Gilgit-Baltistan, local authorities, the British High Commission and the Embassy of Nepal Gripped. Gripped reported three climbers remained missing, with recovery efforts set to continue when conditions allowed.
Background Purja had summited Gasherbrum II less than a week before the avalanche, which he described on Instagram as his 57th 8,000-metre summit [S3]. He had earlier completed an initial round of all 14 peaks, some with supplemental oxygen, in six months around 2019, a feat recorded in the Netflix documentary "14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible," and in January 2021 he took part in a Nepali team's winter ascent of K2 [S3]. Following the documentary's release, two women accused Purja of sexual assault in a 2024 New York Times feature; a 2025 podcast series by reporter Poppy Damon later questioned some of those allegations [S3]. Fundraisers were launched for several guides' families, including one for Sohail Sakhi's mother and brother organised by his friend Chris Lininger, one for Yukta Gurung's family by Little Monsters Films' Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, and a Juniper Fund campaign supporting the families of six Nepali and Pakistani guides lost in the avalanche [S3].
What is not yet confirmed It remains unclear whether one or two avalanches struck the climbers, as only ExplorersWeb raised the possibility of a second slide [S1]. The precise time of the avalanche has not been settled, with outlets reporting times ranging from shortly before 9am to around midday [S1][S2][S3][S5]. The altitude of the strike zone is also reported inconsistently, between roughly 6,579 and 6,660 metres [S1][S3][S5]. The fate of climbers not yet recovered, including those Gripped described as still missing, had not been confirmed at the time of reporting [S4]. The full roster of the ten climbers also varies between the Alpine Club of Pakistan, Desnivel and Climbing, and which version is definitive is not established [S1][S3][S5].
Sources referenced
- Updated: Ten Missing, Including Nirmal Purja, After Avalanche on Broad Peak — ExplorersWeb
- AVALANCHE: TEN CLIMBERS, INCLUDING NIRMAL PURJA, MISSING ON BROAD PEAK — Alpinist Magazine
- Who Were the 10 Climbers Caught in the Broad Peak Avalanche? — Climbing
- Body of Famed Mountaineer Recovered from Broad Peak — Gripped
- Avalancha en el Broad Peak: cuatro personas fallecidas y seis desaparecidas, entre ellas Nirmal Purja — Desnivel
Written by Andoram by combining 5 independently published reports, each linked above. We synthesise facts and reproduce no source text.
Coverage timeline
- Legendary mountaineer Nirmal 'Nims Dai' Purja dies in Broad Peak avalanche — India Today NE, 1 Aug 2026, 17:34 UTC
- Who Is Nirmal ‘Nims’ Purja? Mountaineering World Mourns Climber Killed In Avalanche At Broad Peak — News18, 1 Aug 2026, 07:00 UTC
- Mountaineering fraternity rallies behind ‘Nims Dai’ after Broad Peak avalanche — The Times of India, 1 Aug 2026, 07:00 UTC
This page is an automatically compiled index of third-party reporting. Headlines and links belong to their publishers; Andoram reproduces no article text. Last compiled 28 Aug 2026 17:00 UTC.
