British Nepali mountaineer Nirmal Purja has died along with nine other climbers in an avalanche on Broad Peak in Pakistan, according to his expedition company. Elite Expeditions confirmed the death of the 43 year old climber on social media, saying the news came with profound sadness and heartbreak following Thursday’s avalanche. Purja, who was born in Nepal and later served in the British army, had earned global recognition for climbing the world’s 14 highest peaks in just over six months in 2019. Pakistani officials had earlier reported the recovery of the bodies of three other climbers from the same expedition, identified as American Mallory Geis, Nadhira Ahmed Abdullah Al Harthy from Oman and Pur Bahadur Gurung from Nepal. Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah also confirmed Purja’s death, saying the loss of six Nepali climbers and four foreign climbers, including world record holder Purja, in Pakistan’s Karakoram range had shocked the nation. Shah said the climbers’ courage and contributions would continue to inspire others. Naila Kiani, a spokesperson for the Alpine Club of Pakistan, which is coordinating rescue operations, told a British broadcaster that Purja had led numerous expeditions she had personally taken part in and described him as an extremely experienced and fearless climber with strong leadership skills. Kiani said the Alpine Club would only formally confirm his death once his body has been recovered, though she acknowledged rescuers fear all members of the group have died. She said search teams have spotted some bodies but have not yet been able to reach them. Rescue teams in Pakistan have been searching for the missing climbers on the world’s 12th highest peak following the avalanche, which struck the 8,047 meter summit in the Karakoram mountain range. Purja was leading the multinational climbing group at the time. Also known as Nims, Purja rose to international fame in 2019 after climbing all 14 of the world’s peaks above 8,000 meters in 189 days, breaking the previous record by more than seven years. His achievement later became the subject of a Netflix documentary titled 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible. At the time of his historic climb, he described the effort as grueling but humbling, and said he hoped to show that determination, self belief and positivity could make anything possible. Purja served in the British military for 16 years, including a decade in the special forces, and received an MBE from the late Queen in 2018 in recognition of his extreme high altitude mountaineering achievements. He lived in Hampshire in southern England with his wife and three year old daughter, and was also known as the first Gurkha soldier to climb Everest while still serving in the British military. In his final social media post, shared on Monday, Purja wrote that he had not originally planned to climb Broad Peak. He said his trip had initially been focused solely on Gasherbrum II, another peak in the Karakoram range, but that he realized shortly before departing for Pakistan that summiting Broad Peak as well would leave him needing just one more mountain to become the first person in history to climb all 14 peaks above 8,000 meters twice without supplemental oxygen. He described the added goal as something that emerged unexpectedly rather than as part of a plan, writing that opportunities tend to present themselves quietly to those already putting in the work. He added that he was asking Broad Peak for nothing more than safe passage up and back down, saying he never took any mountain for granted. Broad Peak is widely regarded as one of the more difficult peaks for climbers to summit. The mountain was first successfully climbed in 1957 by an Austrian expedition, and while many climbers have reached its summit since then, dozens have died attempting the ascent. One of its deadliest recorded years was 2013, when at least six climbers lost their lives on the mountain.
