On Gasherbrum IV, two injured climbers are struggling to descend on their own while a small team of Pakistani climbers, airlifted to the mountain during a short break in the weather, try to reach them on foot from Advanced Base Camp.
On Saturday, tragedy struck the Russian team that was trying to recover the remains of Dmitry Golovchenko, who died there in 2023. A serac fell as they proceeded up the highly dangerous icefall on the lower part of the mountain. It buried Sergey Nilov and hit Sergey Mironov and Mikhail Mironov. Nilov is presumed dead, and the two injured climbers are now stranded between 6,200m and 6,300m, fighting for their lives and trying to descend.
The two other climbers, Evgeni Yablokov and Alexey Bautin, were unharmed. They were airlifted and taken to Skardu. Since then, they have been trying to launch a rescue operation. The Russian Federation of Alpinism has stepped in to support the efforts and coordinate actions.
A lucky break
After the serac fall in which Nilov was buried, Mikhail and Sergey Mironov could not move. (Note that the two climbers share the same surname but are unrelated: Sergey Mironov is from Novosibirsk; Mikhail Mironov is from Moscow.) One of them is reportedly seriously injured, and they had lost most of their gear. Night was falling, and they had no resources.
But then, amid the disaster, they had a glimmer of good luck. In the ice rubble, they found Nilov’s backpack and one of their own. They now had sleeping bags, ice axes, a stove to melt water, food, and most importantly, a first aid kit with painkillers. This gave them the chance to deal with their injuries enough to drag themselves 100 meters down. Here, they prepared to survive the night.
The stranded climbers on Gasherbrum IV. Photo courtesy of Irina Morozova
Monday: rescuers at 6,100m
This afternoon, during a short break in the unstable weather, two helicopters dropped off six Pakistani climbers at Advanced Base Camp (6,100m). Evgeni Yablokov, one of the icefall survivors, might be with them. The other survivor, Alexey Bautin, remains in Skardu, coordinating the rescue with the climbers’ home team and the Russian Federation of Alpinism.
Shortly after the rescuers reached the mountain, it started snowing. They will try to get to the stranded climbers tomorrow morning.
Dire situation
The rescuers might be just some 200 vertical meters below the injured pair, but the situation remains difficult. The icefall on the lower part of Gasherbrum IV has many crevasses and highly unstable seracs. Sergey and Mikhail Mironov can hardly move. According to a brief radio contact, they heard the helicopter and were waiting for the rescuers to come up to them.
At the moment, there are no other climbers in Pakistan who could provide at least logistical support. Helicopter pilots said a longline operation was not an option due to the rough terrain.
