Celebrated Nepal-born mountaineer Nirmal Purja has died after an avalanche struck an international expedition on Pakistan’s Broad Peak, his company confirmed on Saturday.
“Today it is with profound sadness and immense heartbreak that we confirm that Nirmal ‘Nimsdai’ Purja tragically lost his life following the avalanche on Broad Peak,” Elite Exped said in an Instagram statement.
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“We have also received confirmation that other members of the expedition sadly did not survive,” it added, without releasing full details.
Purja, 43, and nine other mountaineers had remained missing since Thursday. The avalanche hit while they climbed between Camps 2 and 3 in the Karakoram range. Officials placed the team at roughly 6,600 metres when the snow struck.
Broad Peak rises to about 8,051 metres and ranks as the world’s 12th-highest mountain. Some Pakistani records list its height as 8,047 metres.
Tracking Data Reveals Avalanche’s Force
The avalanche swept away the group around midday, although tracking data suggested it may have struck earlier in the morning. Six climbers were Nepali. The remaining members came from Pakistan, Oman, the United States and China.
“Their tracking beacon data show they were thrown hundreds of metres down the mountain,” Pakistani mountaineer Naila Kiani told Le Monde.
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Rescuers recovered three bodies on Friday and located others in difficult terrain. Officials identified the recovered climbers as Nepal’s Pur Bahadur Gurung, Oman’s Nadhira Al Harthy and American Mallory Geis. Harsh weather and limited helicopter access slowed the operation.
Drone images later helped rescuers spot and identify additional bodies. Chhang Dawa Sherpa of Seven Summit Treks said they remained in a location that made recovery extremely difficult.
Broad Peak has a long summit ridge and presents serious risks from altitude, unstable weather, ice and avalanches. An Austrian expedition completed its first ascent in 1957.
Record-Breaking Career Ends on Pakistan Peak
Purja served with Britain’s Brigade of Gurkhas before joining the Special Boat Service of the Royal Marines. He later became a full-time climber, expedition leader and guide.
In 2019, he climbed all 14 mountains above 8,000 metres in six months and six days, then a record. The 2021 Netflix documentary 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible brought his achievement to a global audience.
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Purja had recently said he was close to becoming the first mountaineer to climb all 14 “super peaks” twice without supplemental oxygen.
“Broad Peak, I ask for nothing but safe passage up and back down,” he wrote this week. “I take zero mountains for granted. Not one.”
His death prompted tributes across Nepal and the international climbing community. Nepalese Prime Minister Balendra Shah said the climbers’ physical journeys had ended, but their courage and contributions would remain inspiring.
The Broad Peak disaster has again highlighted the extreme dangers of high-altitude climbing in Gilgit-Baltistan, home to five of the world’s 14 mountains above 8,000 metres.
