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Karakoram Dispatch

Rescuers Recover Bodies After Broad Peak Avalanche

Andoram Desk3 September 2026 · 05:15 UTC · 3 sources

An avalanche struck a group of 10 climbers on the normal/West Ridge route of Broad Peak (8,051m/26,414ft), the world’s 12th highest peak, in Pakistan’s Karakoram range, on Thursday, July 30. By August 1, Elite Exped had confirmed five deaths among the group, which included climbers from Nepal, Pakistan, the United States, Oman and China. Search and recovery efforts continued into the following days amid difficult terrain and weather conditions.

What happened

The avalanche hit the West Ridge route, locally known as Falchan Kangri, in the Gilgit-Baltistan region. ExplorersWeb Alpinist Magazine Climbing Desnivel Accounts of the timing differ: Climbing reported the slide occurred at about 9 a.m., with GPS tracks indicating it happened between 8:57 and 9:30 a.m., and Desnivel also gave 9:30 a.m. local time, while Alpinist’s initial reporting instead placed the event shortly before noon local time. Sources also diverge on where it struck: Climbing located it at roughly 6,579m (21,580ft), between Camp II and Camp III, while Desnivel gave approximately 6,600m. The mountain’s own elevation is cited differently across outlets, with ExplorersWeb and Climbing using 8,051m and Desnivel using 8,047m.

ExplorersWeb reported that the avalanche did not bury most of the climbers outright but swept them hundreds of metres down the slope. ExplorersWeb Samson Sharaf, a Pakistani high-altitude climber who mentored Sohail Sakhi, said the overhanging section where the accident occurred was clearly visible from below and suggested the entire snow-laden face had most likely released, sweeping the traverse. Climbing Sharaf used GPS data to try to locate the climbers and supplied drone footage to ExplorersWeb and screenshots to Climbing. Alpinist reported that trackers belonging to several missing climbers stopped moving above 7,800m and remained stationary from the time of the avalanche. Alpinist Magazine Desnivel reported that Elite Exped said Nirmal Purja’s tracker appeared to keep registering movement afterward. Desnivel Climbing reported that Mallory Geis’s tracker recorded a drop of 543 metres (1,784ft) during the slide, and that Nadhira Al Harthy’s tracker showed a descent of 1,651 metres (5,417ft).

The people involved

The climbers caught in the avalanche were Nirmal “Nims” Purja of Nepal, Sohail Sakhi of Pakistan, Pur Bahadur “Yukta” Gurung of Nepal, Nima Sherpa of Nepal, Gyalu Sherpa of Nepal, Nawang Thendu Sherpa of Nepal, Kili Pemba “Kilu” Sherpa of Nepal, Mallory Geis of the United States, Nadhira Al Harthy of Oman, and Wang Zhong of China. ExplorersWeb Climbing Desnivel Purja was on Broad Peak primarily to continue his “Hat-Trick Project” supporting the Nimsdai Foundation; Elite Exped said he had decided shortly before travelling to Pakistan to also attempt the peak, accompanied by guides Gurung and Nima Sherpa. Climbing reported a successful summit would have been his 13th ascent toward completing all fourteen 8,000m peaks twice without supplemental oxygen, with Cho Oyu (8,188m/26,864ft) remaining as his final objective.

Kilu Sherpa, lead guide for Imagine Nepal, was hit while guiding Wang Zhong; he had completed all fourteen 8,000m peaks, finishing with Nanga Parbat on July 3, had summited Everest 15 times, and had taken part in the 2021 winter ascent of K2. ExplorersWeb Climbing Sakhi, a Hunza Valley guide and mathematician by training, had worked earlier in 2025 with Mingma G to fix ropes on Kangchenjunga and had previously told ExplorersWeb he was concerned about pay inequity facing Pakistani guides. His client, Mallory Geis, 39, of San Antonio, Texas, was on her first 8,000m attempt after earlier summiting Lobuche East and Mera Peak. Al Harthy had become the first Omani woman to summit Everest in May 2019; Desnivel additionally reported she was the first Omani to summit K2, in 2022, and Nanga Parbat, in 2024, claims not carried in Climbing’s reporting. Desnivel Wang Zhong had reached his 11th 8,000m peak on Gasherbrum II on July 4 alongside Purja, with Broad Peak set to be his 13th and Shishapangma his remaining target. Gurung, an IMFGA-certified guide, had summited 8,000m peaks 28 times, including 10 ascents of Everest and two of K2. Nawang Thendu Sherpa had summited six 8,000m peaks and had taken part in earlier high-altitude rescues, including following a 2025 avalanche on Annapurna.

The response

News broke via Everest Chronicle before being confirmed by the Alpine Club of Pakistan and Mingma David Sherpa, co-founder of Elite Exped. Alpinist Magazine Desnivel On the day of the avalanche, a team led by Mingma G flew a drone over Camp 1 and reported seeing seven immobile bodies; footage later shown to ExplorersWeb showed five figures on the snow. ExplorersWeb Two bodies were retrieved near the base of the mountain the following day. A press release from the Commissioner of Baltistan dated July 31 said rescuers had recovered three bodies, identified as Gurung, Al Harthy and Geis, while Desnivel reported that Karakoram Expeditions announced recovery of four bodies that morning, two identified as Al Harthy and Gurung. Climbing An amputated leg found near Gurung and Al Harthy was later confirmed to belong to Geis; the bodies of Gurung and Al Harthy were flown out by helicopter the day after being found. Climbing reported four further bodies were brought to Camp 1 (5,600m/18,368ft): Purja, Wang Zhong, Nima Sherpa and Kilu Sherpa; one body was spotted higher on the mountain, but recovery there was not attempted because of the risk involved.

Teams faced technical, high-risk terrain, strong winds and concern about triggering a further avalanche. ExplorersWeb Climbing Desnivel Mingma G flew from K2 to join the operation, and he, Sirbaz Khan and other Pakistani and Nepalese climbers reached the accident site on a ground search; Mingma David Sherpa, a member of Nepal’s parliament and a specialist in long-line rescue, flew to Skardu to assist, and two Pakistan Army helicopters were stationed in support. All commercial expeditions on Karakoram 8,000m peaks were called off, and the operation was due to resume on August 1 once poor weather eased. That day, Elite Exped confirmed via Instagram that Purja and Nima Sherpa had died, bringing the confirmed toll to five, and said it had received word that other members had also not survived. Irfan Arshad Khan, president of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, publicly asked Elite Exped to show discretion and stop releasing such information until rescuers had physically reached the remaining climbers. The Juniper Fund opened a fundraiser for the families of the six Nepali and Pakistani guides killed, and separate fundraisers were launched for Sakhi’s family, Gurung’s family and Kilu Sherpa’s wife, Tashi Lhamu Sherpa.

Background and context

Purja had completed the 14 Peaks Challenge without supplemental oxygen on October 4, 2024, after two years and 150 days, having earlier completed the same list with some supplemental oxygen in around six months. Climbing He had summited 8,000m peaks 57 times in total, 29 without supplemental oxygen, and had taken part in the 2021 winter ascent of K2 with nine other Nepali climbers. ExplorersWeb His climbs were the subject of the Netflix documentary “14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible,” and less than a week before the avalanche he had posted on Instagram about reaching the summit of Gasherbrum II, describing it as his 57th 8,000m summit. Following the documentary’s release, two women accused Purja of sexual assault in a 2024 feature in the New York Times; a 2025 podcast series by reporter Poppy Damon later questioned some of those allegations.

What is not yet confirmed

The precise time and altitude at which the avalanche struck remain unsettled, with Climbing, Desnivel and Alpinist offering differing figures. Alpinist Magazine Climbing Desnivel The fate of the body spotted at a higher elevation, and whether recovery would be attempted, was not resolved in the reporting. No outlet detailed the status of Gyalu Sherpa beyond listing him among those caught in the avalanche. ExplorersWeb The scope of Elite Exped’s statement that other expedition members had also not survived, including which individuals it referred to, remained unclarified pending physical confirmation by rescuers. Desnivel’s claims regarding Al Harthy’s K2 and Nanga Parbat summits had not been corroborated by other outlets.

Sources referenced

Written by Andoram by combining 4 independently published reports, each linked above. We synthesise facts and reproduce no source text.

Coverage timeline

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 3 Sep 2026 05:15 UTC.

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