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Powerful Avalanche Kills 10, Including World Record-Breaking Mountaineer

Renowned Nepalese mountaineer Nirmal Purja, who made history by climbing all 14 peaks above 8,000 metres in just 190 days, has died in an avalanche on Broad Peak in Pakistan.

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Nine other members of the expedition also lost their lives in one of the worst tragedies in modern mountaineering.

The avalanche struck the team on July 30 as the climbers were ascending from Camp 2 toward Camp 3, at an altitude of around 6,600 metres. Search-and-rescue operations began the following day, but severe weather conditions hampered the response.

The bodies of Pur Bahadur Gurung of Nepal, Nadhira Al Harthy, the first Omani woman to climb Everest, and American mountaineer Sarah Mallory were initially recovered.

After the search resumed, the deaths of Nirmal Purja and seven other missing climbers were also confirmed.

The news was confirmed by Elite Exped, the agency led by Purja himself, which described him in a public statement as “one of the greatest mountaineers in history” and a leader who inspired millions of people with his courage and determination.

The deaths of Purja and the nine other expedition members are considered one of the greatest disasters in the history of climbing the world’s 8,000-metre peaks, joining other well-known tragedies on Everest, K2, Manaslu and Nanga Parbat.

Purja had arrived in Pakistan to climb Gasherbrum II, but later decided to attempt Broad Peak as well, aiming to become the first person to climb all 14 peaks above 8,000 metres twice without using supplemental oxygen.

Just days before the tragedy, he wrote on social media: “I don’t take any mountain for granted. From the moment I leave base camp, I am 100% focused.”

Nirmal Purja rose to fame in 2019 with “Project Possible,” when he climbed the world’s 14 highest peaks in just 190 days, a record also featured in the Netflix documentary “14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible.” The former British special forces soldier was regarded as one of the leading figures in contemporary mountaineering.