OMM Redaksiyası
At least 10 Nepali climbers preparing to support an expedition are missing after an avalanche hit a base camp near Himlung Himal in Nepal’s Manang district on Sunday, according to AFP.
The local guides were at a staging area close to the 7,126-metre (23,380-foot) peak when the avalanche struck in the morning. Heavy snowfall had been reported around the mountain in recent days.
“Eight members of our expedition team and two more from another company have been reported missing,” Bibhuti Chand Thakur of “Himalaya Holidays Trekking” told AFP.
Rescue efforts hindered by poor weather
Helicopters and rescue teams have so far been unable to reach the site because of difficult weather conditions. The mountain lies near Nepal’s border with Tibet.
The missing Nepali team had been sent ahead of foreign climbers to prepare the camp, manage the route and fix ropes on the mountain.
Persistent rain and snowfall in Nepal’s mountain districts have created hazardous conditions for the country’s economically important climbing tourism industry. Climbers were forced to leave Mount Manaslu, the world’s eighth-highest peak, earlier this week because of the growing avalanche risk.
Recent deadly incidents in the Himalayas
The incident comes less than two months after six climbers died on Broad Peak in Pakistan, including British-Nepali mountaineer Nirmal Purja.
Meanwhile, extreme weather in India’s neighbouring Uttar Pradesh region has killed more than 50 people, according to officials.
Recovery efforts are also continuing near the Nepal-Tibet border, where more than 6,000 people remain missing after a massive flood and landslide in August. More than 1,400 deaths have been confirmed after a glacial collapse sent large quantities of water and debris down the Trishuli River valley, destroying settlements.
