Chances of finding missing climbers in Indian Himalayas are ‘bleak’, rescuers say

Eight climbers are missing on Nanda Devi mountain in India.
REUTERS

Indian rescuers say the chances of finding eight mountaineers, who went missing while attempting to scale India's second-highest mountain, are “bleak”.

The team, led by British climber Martin Moran, went missing last week on their ascent to summit a previously unclimbed peak on Nanda Devi East at 21,250ft.

It is now feared that the team were caught in an avalanche that occurred in the area.

A total of eight climbers - four Britons, two Americans, an Australian and an Indian liaison officer – failed to reach the base camp on 26 May as expected.

Hope fades as an avalanche was confirmed on Nanda Devi mountain.
REUTERS

The rest of the group have been named locally as John McLaren, Rupert Whewell and Richard Payne from the UK as well as US nationals Anthony Sudekum and Ronald Beimel, Australian Ruth McCance and Indian guide Chetan Pandey.

Vijay Kumar Jogdande, a civil administrator in northern India's Uttarakhand state, said the rescue operation, launched on Saturday, was called off Sunday due to bad weather and the search would resume on Monday.

He said that four other team members, who had stayed back at the second base camp were brought back down on Sunday and had given tips to rescuers while they carried out their search.

"The first aerial recce has concluded," said Vijay Kumar Jogdanda earlier on Sunday, confirming an avalanche was feared to have caught the group in the area around India's second-highest peak.

He added: "There were only tents spotted, but no human presence. The second helicopter has left for the recce. Chances of survival are bleak."

The mountaineers were supposed to return to the base camp on Friday, Jogdande said.

"But when they failed to return, an alert was sounded and the rescue operation was launched," he said.

Jogdande said trekking has been called off in the region due to inclement weather and an avalanche.

"Choppers are carrying out sorties to bring back people from the base camp," he said from Pithoragarh, a town 400 kilometers (250 miles) southwest of Lucknow city.

The route to the Nanda Devi peak begins from the Munsiyari area, about 130 kilometers (80 miles) from Pithoragarh. Mountaineers traverse on foot about 90 kilometers (55 miles) from Munsiyari to the Nanda Devi base camp.

Moran "is an accomplished mountaineer and had climbed Nanda Devi peak several times," Jogdande said.

Moran's company wrote on its Facebook page on Sunday that it was working with authorities and the British

Association of Mountain Guides to "gather information regarding the Nanda Devi East expedition team."

"Out of respect for those involved and their families, we will be making no further comments at this time," reads the post.

Amit Chowdhary, spokesman for the Indian Mountaineering Foundation, said the missing climbers' location was known up to 26 May.

He said they had been in radio contact with the other four expedition team members led by Mark Thomas, also a British mountaineer.

Chowdhary said when the Thomas-led team was no longer receiving radio updates from the other expedition team, Thomas went to look for the missing climbers the next day.

"There was a trail of the climbers there and the trail ended in an avalanche. There was evidence of a very large avalanche," Chowdhary cited Thomas as having said.

Chowdhary said he spoke with Thomas on Sunday after he and his three associates were brought down from the base camp.

He said that as Thomas accompanied rescuers in the chopper, they were able to spot the trail, but not the missing climbers.

"They could see from the helicopter footmarks of the team, but nothing else," he said.

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