Nearly two weeks after one of the deadliest mountaineering disasters in recent Pakistani history, local volunteers have recovered the remains of the last missing Pakistani climber killed in a July 30 avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak, local officials confirmed Thursday.
Sohail Sakhi, one of the 10 members of an international expedition led by famous high-altitude climber Nirmal Purja, had been unaccounted for since the avalanche cut off all contact between the team and base camp. Authorities confirmed all 10 climbers had died after the incident, and Sakhi’s recovery brings the total number of bodies retrieved to eight.
The volunteer team hailing from the local Karakoram region located Sakhi’s body before additional rescue teams joined to carry the remains back to the mountain’s base camp. According to the Alpine Club of Pakistan, the body will be airlifted via helicopter to a regional air base as soon as favorable weather conditions allow for safe flight operations.
This recovery comes just 48 hours after a moving candlelight vigil was held in Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital. Mountaineers, diplomatic representatives, and civil society activists gathered to honor the lives of the 10 lost climbers, who came from six nations across the globe: Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, China, Britain and the United States.
Standing at 8,051 meters (26,414 feet) above sea level, Broad Peak ranks as the 12th highest mountain on Earth, located in Pakistan’s Karakoram mountain range just adjacent to K2, the world’s second-tallest peak. Northern Pakistan, which hosts five of the world’s 14 highest mountains, has long been a destination for experienced mountaineers from around the world, but the region’s unpredictable glacial conditions and harsh weather make climbing-related accidents a regular and tragic occurrence.