The effort to recover Nirmal Purja’s and two other bodies from Broad Peak enters its sixth day. The helicopters are not flying today due to bad weather, and with the long-line option fading, Mingma G has decided to take a risk to carry his friend’s remains down through an avalanche-prone area.
Out of the 10 climbers who died in a massive avalanche on Broad Peak on Thursday, eight have been located, and searchers have carried four down the mountain. However, the bodies of well-known climber Nirmal “Nims” Purja, Nima Sherpa (one of Purja’s guides), and Wang Zhong of China (a client with Mingma G’s Imagine Nepal team) couldn’t be carried below 5,000m. That is where they remain.
Mingma G explained the reason to Everest Chronicle yesterday: “There was another avalanche,” he said, adding that rescuers had to suspend their efforts to move the bodies all the way to Base Camp.
Searchers approach the accident site on Saturday.
Today, however, Nepalese media and blogs report that Mingma G has decided to assume the risk and enter the avalanche-prone area to recover the bodies.
“I will try to climb the treacherous section of Broad Peak to retrieve three bodies,” Mingma G told The Tourism Times in exclusive comments. He says he wants to make his gesture to honor the mountain community. His latest social media posts also show this is something personal. On Saturday, he wrote:
My loving brothers Kilu, Wang and Nims, we will take you back home to see families…
Friendship bonds
Mingma G has been a close friend and loyal ally of Nirmal Purja since they made the first winter ascent of K2 together in January 2021. Since then, they usually joined forces on their commercial expeditions. On several occasions, their two teams pushed for the summit when other expeditions had retreated.
At times, that proved a success, like two weeks ago on Gasherbrum II. Still, on other occasions, their bold but dangerous attempts ended in disaster, as it did in the fall of 2023 on Shisha Pangma, where two American women and their Sherpa guides died.
Wang Zhong was a regular client on Mingma G’s expeditions. Killi Pemba “Kilu” Sherpa, one of Mingma’s leading guides and also a member of the first winter K2 team, was finally recovered from Broad Peak yesterday.
Only team left
“All others have already left, and my team is the only one here,” Mingma G also told The Tourism Times. He did not provide the names of others with him. All we know is that it’s a small team and, as far as we know, Sirbaz Khan of Pakistan is still on the mountain. It is worth noting that Khan has often climbed as a member and rope-fixer on Mingma G’s expeditions.
File image of Sirbaz Khan of Pakistan and Mingma G of Nepal, currently leading the recovery operation on Broad Peak. Photo: The Broad Boy
In addition to the three bodies stuck at 5,000m in that dangerous area, three other bodies remain on the mountain: Nawang Thindhu Sherpa’s remains lie in an unreachable area at around 6,000, and the location of Pakistani guide Sohail Sakhi and his American client, Mallory Geis, is still unknown. Geis’s death was sadly confirmed when the search party found her amputated leg.
This is a message posted jointly today by Elite Exped guide Tejan Gurung, his partner Mingma David Sherpa, and Mingma G:
Part of the text posted today on Instagram by Mingma G, Mingma David Sherpa, and Tejan Gurung.
