Broad Peak Avalanche: Nirmal Purja Nims among 10 missing after Pakistan accident

On July 30, 2026, a major avalanche struck an international climbing team on Broad Peak in Pakistan’s Karakoram Range, leaving 10 mountaineers unaccounted for, including renowned Nepali climber Nirmal “Nimsdai” or “Nims” Purja founder of Elite Exped that organizes many high altitude climbs, including Mount Everest and Mount Kilimanjaro. The news have been received with immense sadness and shock in the mountaineering community.

Just a few years back, in 2024, Nirmal “Nimsdai” Purja led a nine-climber rescue team that recovered the bodies of American climber Anna Gutu and her Sherpa guide Mingmar Sherpa from Mount Shishapangma in Tibet. The pair had been buried by an avalanche on October 7 (seven months earlier). Over three grueling days and nights, the team worked under extreme conditions at high altitude. Manpower was limited: three rescuers fell ill, two required supplementary oxygen, and one was diverted to another mission on Everest. Nimsdai later described the effort as nearly failing due to exhaustion, stating he had never felt that level of fatigue. The bodies were successfully brought down and arrived in Kathmandu on around May 18th 2024. We are praying that he is found safe and sound.

Verified and updated details of the July 31, 2026 Broad Peak avalanche (as of the latest consistent reports from the Alpine Club of Pakistan, Explorersweb, Reuters, DAWN, and other outlets):

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See the tracker details of Nims Purja here

Core Facts

Date and approximate time: Thursday, July 30, 2026. GPS tracker data and detailed reports place the avalanche at roughly 9:20–9:30 a.m. local time. Some early Alpine Club of Pakistan statements described it as “around midday.”
Location: Broad Peak (8,047 m / listed by some sources as 8,051 m), Karakoram Range, Pakistan. The team was on the standard West Ridge route between Camp II and Camp III at approximately 6,600 metres.
Nature of the event: A large avalanche (some reports mention possible multiple slides) swept the climbers downhill. InReach/GPS trackers recorded sudden vertical drops of several hundred metres. Nirmal Purja’s device showed a fall of about 800 m; Nadhira Al Harthy’s indicated a steeper descent nearly to the base of the mountain.

The full list of the 10 climbers involved includes:

Nepal – Nirmal “Nimsdai” Purja, Pur Bahadur Gurung (Yukta), Kili Pemba Sherpa, Nima Sherpa, Nawang Thindu Sherpa, Gyalu Sherpa
Pakistan – Sohail Sakhi
United States – Mallory Geis
Oman – Nadhira Al Harthy
China – Wang Zhong

Casualties (verified status)

Four bodies recovered by ground teams (including personnel from Karakorum Expeditions) at the avalanche debris field opposite Broad Peak Base Camp.
Two positively identified by the Alpine Club of Pakistan:
- Nadhira Al Harthy (Oman)
- Pur Bahadur Gurung / Yukta (Nepal)
The identities of the other two recovered bodies have not been publicly confirmed.
Six climbers remain missing, including Nirmal Purja. No confirmed survivors have been reported.

Latest Rescue Status Updates

Notification to authorities was delayed (reported 10–13 hours after the event).
Ground search began first; helicopters (Pakistan Army Aviation) were dispatched from Skardu on the morning of July 31.
The Alpine Club of Pakistan is coordinating with government agencies. Weather initially hindered aerial operations.

Broad Peak rises to 8,047 metres (about 26,400 feet), ranking as the world’s 12th-highest mountain. The group was ascending the standard West Ridge route between Camp II and Camp III, roughly at 6,500–6,600 metres, when the slide occurred in the morning—reports place the timing around 9:00–9:30 a.m. local time, though some early statements referenced midday. GPS trackers from several climbers recorded sudden, steep descents of hundreds of metres within minutes, consistent with being carried by moving snow and ice. Some devices indicated falls of 800 metres or more, with at least one track ending near the base of the mountain.

The Alpine Club of Pakistan confirmed the loss of contact with the entire team shortly after the event. The expedition included five Nepali climbers led by Purja (among them guides such as Pur Bahadur Gurung, also known as Yukta; Kili Pemba Sherpa; Nima Sherpa; Nawang Thindu Sherpa; and Gyalu Sherpa), Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi, American climber Mallory Geis, Omani climber Nadhira Al Harthy, and Chinese climber Wang Zhong.

Purja, a former British military member who became a professional high-altitude climber, is widely known for setting a record in 2019 by summiting all 14 of the world’s 8,000-metre peaks in just over six months. His achievements were documented in the Netflix film 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible. He has continued pursuing multiple traverses of the 8,000ers, including oxygen-free ascents. Rescue efforts faced initial delays due to weather and the remote location. Ground teams reached the debris field opposite Broad Peak Base Camp and recovered four bodies. Two have been identified as Nadhira Al Harthy of Oman and Pur Bahadur Gurung (Yukta) of Nepal; the identities of the other two remain unconfirmed in official updates. Helicopters were dispatched from Skardu on Friday morning, supported by drones and additional personnel, including climbers mobilised from nearby K2 Base Camp. The Alpine Club of Pakistan has coordinated closely with government authorities to deploy all available resources as conditions allow.

Some tracking data later showed minor position changes for Purja’s device after the initial rapid descent. Experts caution that such signals in high-altitude terrain can result from equipment shifting, signal interference, or other non-human factors rather than confirmed movement by a survivor. The mountaineering community, families, and officials in Nepal, Pakistan, and beyond have expressed deep concern while holding onto cautious hope. Operations continue under challenging conditions typical of the Karakoram, where weather, altitude, and terrain complicate rapid response. Further updates depend on the progress of aerial and ground searches.

What Happened on the Mountain

On the morning of July 30, 2026, a large avalanche hit an international climbing team on Broad Peak (8,047 metres), the world’s 12th-highest mountain in Pakistan’s Karakoram Range. The group was moving between Camp II and Camp III at approximately 6,500–6,600 metres when the slide struck, around 9:00–9:30 a.m. local time.

GPS trackers recorded abrupt drops of several hundred metres. Nirmal Purja’s device showed a descent of roughly 800 metres, while Nadhira Al Harthy’s indicated a far steeper fall nearly to the mountain’s base. Contact with the entire team was lost immediately.

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Search and Rescue Operations

Helicopters from Skardu were deployed on the morning of July 31, supported by ground teams and climbers mobilised from nearby areas including K2 Base Camp. Weather had delayed earlier aerial efforts. The Alpine Club of Pakistan is coordinating with government authorities to use all available resources, including drones where possible.

Officials note that survival prospects diminish with time at high altitude, though search efforts continue under improving conditions.

About Nirmal Purja

Nirmal Purja, widely known as Nimsdai or Nims, is a Nepal-born former British military member who set a landmark record in 2019 by climbing all 14 of the world’s 8,000-metre peaks in just over six months. He is the founder of Elite Exped and has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro many times.

His story featured in the Netflix documentary 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible. He was leading the expedition as part of ongoing efforts related to multiple traverses of the 8,000ers. The mountaineering community, families, and authorities in Nepal, Pakistan, Oman, and beyond continue to monitor developments closely while hoping for further positive news from the ongoing search.

Notable climbers who have perished on Broad Peak (8,047 m / ~8,051 m, Karakoram Range, Pakistan) include several well-known figures in high-altitude mountaineering. As of late 2025, the mountain has recorded around 39 fatalities.

Here are some of the more prominent ones:

Maciej Berbeka (Poland, 2013) — A highly experienced Polish Himalayan climber and veteran of multiple 8,000 m peaks. He was part of the team that made the first winter ascent of Broad Peak in March 2013. Berbeka and teammate Tomasz Kowalski disappeared during the descent and were later declared dead after unsuccessful search efforts in extreme conditions.
Tomasz Kowalski (Poland, 2013) — The 27-year-old partner of Berbeka on the same historic winter expedition. His body was later located; Berbeka’s was not recovered. Their deaths marked a tragic end to the first successful winter climb of the peak.
Cristina Castagna (Italy, 2009) — An accomplished Italian mountaineer. She slipped and fell into a crevasse while descending from high on the mountain in poor weather. Her body was never recovered.
Kim Hong-bin (South Korea, 2021) — A determined adaptive climber who had lost all his fingers to frostbite on a previous expedition. He summited Broad Peak but fell during the descent (near a cornice on the summit ridge) and could not be rescued despite efforts by nearby climbers.
Gordon Henderson (United Kingdom, 2022) — A British climber who suffered a fatal fall near the summit during a busy season.
Murad Sadpara (Pakistan, 2024) — A well-known Pakistani high-altitude climber and rescue specialist (from the prominent Sadpara family of mountaineers). He died from injuries caused by a rockfall while descending after an aborted summit attempt.
Sharif Sadpara (Pakistan, 2022) — Another member of the Sadpara climbing family. He fell to his death through a collapsing snow cornice high on the mountain.

Other significant losses include three Iranian climbers (Aidin Bozorgi, Mojtaba Jarrahi, and Pouya Keivan) who disappeared in 2013 after completing a new route on the west face, and several Polish climbers in the mid-1970s during early attempts on the peak.