The bodies of world-renowned Nepali mountaineer Nirmal Purja and three fellow climbers have been recovered from Broad Peak in Pakistan’s Gilgit-Baltistan, three days after a devastating avalanche struck their expedition.
The recovery operation, carried out under extremely hazardous conditions, followed confirmation by expedition organizer Elite Exped that all 10 members of the summit team had lost their lives after going missing during the climb.
According to the Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP), a ground rescue team reached Purja’s body at an altitude of approximately 5,700 metres on Sunday. The team also recovered the bodies of three other climbers, later identified as China’s Wang Zhong and Nepal’s Nima Sherpa and Kili Pemba Sherpa.
The four identified climbers are being transported from the mountain toward Camp 1 before being brought down to the base. The ACP said another body has been located at a significantly higher elevation, but recovery is unlikely for now due to the extreme danger posed by the terrain and ongoing avalanche risk.
Among those confirmed dead is Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi, who was part of the expedition. Earlier, rescuers had also recovered three bodies and remains believed to belong to an American climber.
An eight-member rescue team consisting of experienced Pakistani and Nepali climbers carried out the search on foot after helicopters were unable to operate because of poor weather and difficult flying conditions.
Broad Peak, standing at 8,051 metres, is the world’s 12th-highest mountain and one of Pakistan’s most challenging peaks. The Karakoram giant is known for its unpredictable weather, frequent avalanches and technically demanding routes, making rescue operations particularly dangerous.
Nirmal Purja, popularly known as “Nims Dai,” was regarded as one of the world’s greatest high-altitude climbers. He gained global fame after completing the unprecedented feat of climbing all 14 of the world’s 8,000-metre peaks in just over six months in 2019, a record documented in the Netflix film 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible. His death marks one of the deadliest mountaineering tragedies in Pakistan in recent years.