Carrie Davies
BBC Pakistan correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

The search-and-rescue operation looking for 10 climbers missing in the Karakorum mountains has detected the location of four of their trackers - although they cannot identify if the climbers they belong to are dead or alive, according to the General Secretary of Pakistan’s Alpine club.

The 10 climbers include renowned Nepal-born former British special forces soldier Nirmal Purja. All were climbing Broad Peak, the world’s 12th-highest mountain, when an avalanche struck.

It is a nervous wait as rescuers try to reach the four climbers' location. Ayaz Shigri, general secretary of Pakistan Alpine Club, said that while the trackers had been located, there has been no movement from them.

The rescue operation continues with drones and a ground team. Military helicopters are also on the way, and currently at the K2 base camp, according to Shigri.

He estimated it to be a four-hour climb to reach the location of the four trackers with oxygen support. He hoped there would be more clarity by early evening, but said they did not know about the location of the other six climbers.

Broad Peak is the twelfth tallest mountain on Earth and the third tallest in the Karakoram Range. Its name comes from its unusually long summit ridge, which extends for about 2 kilometers.

There had been a total of 404 successful ascents of Broad Peak as of March 2012, while 21 climbers had died trying - a fatality rate of about 5 percent, said Nasa.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Local officials have told BBC Urdu that three trackers have been located at altitudes ranging from approximately 6,000m to 7,000m.

Mountaineers usually carry GPS tracking devices when they climb major peaks. In 2024, the Nepali government made it mandatory for Mount Everest climbers to carry such trackers.

Pradeep Bashyal
BBC Nepali, Kathmandu

Nepal’s Tourism Department has issued a statement saying it has instructed the country's embassy in Islamabad to coordinate with the Pakistan government in rescue efforts.

Despite reports of multiple bodies having been found, the Department did not confirm any deaths - naming the six Nepalis from the expedition as "missing".

Nepali companies based across several mountains in Pakistan are preparing to go to the scene and work with local authorities, it added.

Department spokesperson Himal Gautam told the BBC: "There is a significant presence of Nepali Sherpas and expedition companies who are coordinating among themselves."

"This is an unprecedented incident," Gautam added. "However, there are still some tiny hopes, with some conflicting information."

Medhavi Gulati, a researcher on Sherpa and high-altitude mountaineering who is a lecturer at Panjab University says Nepal’s Sherpas are the most efficient highly-skilled staff when it comes to professional guiding.

"Sherpas are highly preferred over local guides in because of their long history of high-altitude mountaineering and their professional training across diverse mountain environments."

Pradeep Bashyal
BBC Nepali, Kathmandu

Pakistan’s mountains have gained popularity as more and more people attempt to complete the 14 Peaks: the challenge of climbing all fourteen of the world's mountains that rise higher than 8,000 metres.

Of these fourteen peaks, five are climbed from Pakistan, two from China (including Everest, which is also climbed from Nepal), and eight from Nepal.

Nepal’s Sherpas, renowned for their mountain-guiding expertise, spend most of the spring climbing season working on Nepal’s high mountains. As the monsoon arrives in Nepal, many go to Pakistan for its climbing season before returning home for Nepal’s autumn expeditions.

“The recently growing prestige of completing all 14 peaks has made Pakistan’s mountains the second major workplace for Nepal’s Sherpas,” says Khimlal Gautam, a Nepali mountaineer and author.

“However, Sherpas are equally sought after across the world - from the mountains of Europe and the Americas, to Antarctica.”

As many as four bodies have been recovered by ground rescue teams, president of the Alpine Club of Pakistan Irfan Arshad Khan has said in a post on Instagram.

The BBC is unable to independently verify this.

Earlier, we reported that Nepal's Ambassador to Pakistan, Rita Dhital, said she had acknowledged that there were reports of bodies found on the scene but said she had not received hat there was no official confirmation.

The seach for the missing mountaineers on Broad Peak is under way, our teams on the ground in Pakistan can confirm.

In an interview with Nepali news outlet Kantipur, Nepali Ambassador to Pakistan Rita Dhital says an aerial and ground search effort has been mobilised.

Dhital says the aerial search involves helicopters and drones and acknowledged that there are unconfirmed reports of bodies found on the scene, but added that there was no official confirmation yet.

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Nirmal Purja, known as Nims Dai, holds multiple mountaineering records.

But his most famous feat was set in 2019, when he climbed the world’s 14 tallest peaks in just six months - the shortest amount of time anyone has done that.

The previous record for such a feat stood at nearly eight years.

This journey, named Project Possible, was captured in the documentary 14 Peaks: Nothing is Impossible.

As he approached the peak of Everest in May 2019, he snapped a photo of a snaking queue of climbers all waiting to summit

The traffic jam photo went viral and sparked a conversation about dangerous overcrowding on the world’s tallest peak.

The message he said he hoped to send with his ambitious mission was that anyone could achieve their dreams if they put their minds to it.

"It's not about mountain climbing, it's about following your goals," he previously told the BBC.

A group of mountaineers, including renowned Nepali-born climber Nirmal Purja are feared missing on Broad Peak, the world's 12th highest mountain.

Here's what you need to know:

• The search will start as soon as the weather permits and the Pakistan Army has dispatched two helicopters
• Purja is the leader of the expedition. He is famed for climbing all 14 of the world's 8,000-metre plus mountains in just over six months in 2019
• The avalanche struck late on Thursday and the group has not been contacted since
• Nepali media report two bodies have been found and have yet to be identified

We'll bring you the latest updates as we get them - stay with us.

Pradeep Bashyal
BBC Nepali, Kathmandu

Nepal's Mountaineering Association (NMA) is currently coordinating with the Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP) in its rescue efforts, says Rajendra Bahadur Lama, General Secretary of NMA.

"Some of our Sherpa friends based in K2 are going there for rescue efforts," he said, adding that there were reports that some mountaineers had been spotted from rescue helicopters, though this cannot be confirmed.

The 10 climbers on the mountain are made up of guides and their foreign clients from three Nepali companies - Elite Exped, Seven Summit Treks and Imagine Nepal.

Nepali news outlet Kantipur is reporting now that two bodies of two climbers have been found at the scene.

Thaneshwar Guragain, general manager of hiking agency Seven Summit Treks, told Kantipur that an identification process was underway.

When asked about the possibility of finding other climbers alive, Guragain said their chanes were "slim", adding "the space for hope has become very narrow".

The Alpine Club has released the names of the 10 climbers who are missing after the avalanche on Broad Peak:

1. Nadhira Ahmed Abdullah Al Harthy (Oman)
2. Sohail Sakhi (Pakistan)
3. Wang Zhong (China)
4. Mallory Geis (US)
5. Nirmal Purja "Nims Dai" (Nepal)
6. Pur Bahadur Gurung "Yukta" (Nepal)
7. Kili Pemba Sherpa "Kilu" (Nepal)
8. Nima Sherpa (Nepal)
9. Nawang Thindu Sherpa (Nepal)
10. Gyalu Sherpa (Nepal)

Carrie Davies
BBC Pakistan correspondent

It's just past 9am in Pakistan and two army rescue helicopters carrying rescue personnel and additional specialised equipment have been dispatched to support the ongoing search and rescue operation, the country's Alpine Club has told me.

The helicopters are reinforcing efforts on the ground to assist the stranded climbers and enhance the effectiveness of the operation in the challenging high-altitude environment, they added.

The Alpine Club also said they sincerely appreciated the prompt response and unwavering support of the Pakistan Army Aviation and all agencies involved and they remained hopeful for the safe recovery of the missing climbers and would continue to provide updates

Koh Ewe
Live reporter

Climbers on other mountains in the region have been deployed to help with search efforts on Broad Peak, a Nepalese lawmaker has just told the BBC.

Climbers in K2 and K3, two nearby mountains in the Karakoram range are descending from their camps to help with search efforts, says Mingma Gyabu Sherpa, a Nepalese lawmaker. He's also a business associate of Nirmal Purja.

Members of Imagine Nepal, a commercial mountaineering operator, are also helping out, he says.

Earlier we reported that movement had been recorded on Purja's tracking device - Mingma Gyabu Sherpa has confirmed this to the BBC as well, though he adds that this movement was recorded in the tracking system yesterday.

Image source, Getty Images

Broad Peak in Pakistan is regarded as one of the more challenging mountains for expeditions, and is ranked as the world's 12th highest peak.

It's summit is 8,047m (26,400ft) high. That is also where yesterday's avalanche occured, in the Karakoram range, according to Pakistani authorities.

It is among 14 "death zone" peaks that Nirmal Purja climbed in just over six months in 2019.

In 2022, Broad Peak was the subject of an eponymous Netflix film that told the story of how a Polish climber attempted the first winter ascent to the mountain's peak.

Image source, International Space Station

The tracking device belonging to Nirmal Purja has reportedly been showing movement, according to a report by Nepali newspaper Kantipur.

The device's position has been changing in the tracking system, Mingma Gyabu Sherpa, Nirmal Purja's business partner, told Kantipur.

He also said that even though the avalanche happened in the day on Thursday, they only got detailed information of it in the evening.

We'll bring you more updates as we get them.

The Alpine Club of Pakistan released this statement earlier about the missing climbers. Here it is in full:

The Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP) has received deeply concerning reports of an avalanche that struck a team of climbers on Broad Peak (8,047m) in the Karakoram mountain range around midday today.

According to the initial information received, the expedition comprises 10 climbers, including five Nepalese mountaineers led by the renowned climber Nims Dai [Purja], one Pakistani climber, Sohail Sakhi from Hunza, one Omani climber, one American climber, one Chinese climber, Mr. Wang, and one other foreign climber. The entire team has reportedly been out of communication since the avalanche.

President of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, Major General Irfan Arshad, HI(M), along with the senior leadership of the Club, is in constant contact with the highest government authorities and all relevant agencies to facilitate an immediate search and rescue operation. Every possible effort is being made to ensure that helicopter support and all available rescue resources are mobilized at the earliest opportunity, subject to weather and operational conditions.

The Alpine Club of Pakistan is closely monitoring the situation and coordinating with all concerned stakeholders. The Club prays for the safety and successful rescue of all the climbers and stands in solidarity with their families and the international mountaineering community during this difficult time.

Further updates will be shared as more information becomes available.

Search operations are expected to start soon, the BBC has learned.

A helicopter is set to fly off from the city of Skardu, says Karrar Haidri, the senior vice president of the Alpine Club of Pakistan.

In his last post on X before the expedition, published on Monday, Purja said that he had not intended to climb Broad Peak at first.

"Initially, the plan was to climb just G2," he wrote. But right before he set off for Pakistan, he realised that if he also managed to climb while he was there, he would only have one more mountain to conquer before becoming the "first person in history to climb all 14 eight-thousanders twice. Without oxygen."

An eight-thousander refers to a mountain that rises over 8,000m (26,247ft) above sea level. There are only 14 of them in the world.

"This wasn’t planned," Purja wrote. "But opportunities don’t scream: they whisper to those already working in silence."

"Broad Peak, I ask for nothing but safe passage up and back down. I take zero mountains for granted," he wrote.

Image source, Getty Images

Nirmal Purja is known for climbing all 14 of the world's 8,000-metre plus mountains in just over six months in 2019. Before that, the record for climbing the 14 peaks stood at seven years and 10 months.

According to his website, the 14 peaks represented a "death zone" where human life could not exist.

He also holds six Guinness World Records for reaching many of the world's highest peaks at the fastest time.

Nepal-born Purja joined the British Army in 2003 and became a Royal Marine in 2009.

He went to Everest Base Camp in 2012, and instead of returning to Kathmandu, he summited the 6,119m Lobuche East mountain in Nepal - his first peak.