Pakistan teams search on foot for remains of climbers as weather grounds helicopters

Pakistan teams search on foot for remains of climbers as weather grounds helicopters 1 of 3 | In this photo released by the Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan on Friday, July 31, 2026, members of a mountaineers rescue team prepare to depart from an airbase on a search operation for climbers missing after an avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak, in Skardu, in Gilgit-Baltistan’s region, in northern Pakistan. (Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan via AP) 2 of 3 | Nirmal Purja gestures at Tribhuwan International airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Jan. 26, 2021. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha, File) 3 of 3 | In this photo released by the Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan on Friday, July 31, 2026, members of a mountaineers rescue team pose for photo with honorary general secretary of Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan Ayaz Ahmed Shigri, center, before departing from an airbase on a search operation for climbers missing after an avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak, in Skardu, in Gilgit-Baltistan’s region, in northern Pakistan. (Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan via AP) 1 of 3 | In this photo released by the Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan on Friday, July 31, 2026, members of a mountaineers rescue team prepare to depart from an airbase on a search operation for climbers missing after an avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak, in Skardu, in Gilgit-Baltistan’s region, in northern Pakistan. (Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan via AP) 1 of 3 In this photo released by the Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan on Friday, July 31, 2026, members of a mountaineers rescue team prepare to depart from an airbase on a search operation for climbers missing after an avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak, in Skardu, in Gilgit-Baltistan’s region, in northern Pakistan. (Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan via AP) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 2 of 3 | Nirmal Purja gestures at Tribhuwan International airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Jan. 26, 2021. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha, File) 2 of 3 Nirmal Purja gestures at Tribhuwan International airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Jan. 26, 2021. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 3 of 3 | In this photo released by the Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan on Friday, July 31, 2026, members of a mountaineers rescue team pose for photo with honorary general secretary of Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan Ayaz Ahmed Shigri, center, before departing from an airbase on a search operation for climbers missing after an avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak, in Skardu, in Gilgit-Baltistan’s region, in northern Pakistan. (Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan via AP) 3 of 3 In this photo released by the Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan on Friday, July 31, 2026, members of a mountaineers rescue team pose for photo with honorary general secretary of Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan Ayaz Ahmed Shigri, center, before departing from an airbase on a search operation for climbers missing after an avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak, in Skardu, in Gilgit-Baltistan’s region, in northern Pakistan. (Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan via AP) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] ISLAMABAD (AP) — Teams in Pakistan searched on foot for the remains of 10 climbers killed in an avalanche on the world’s 12th-highest mountain as poor weather kept helicopters out of the air Tuesday, authorities said. Helicopters were on standby but unable to fly by noon for the ongoing search and recovery operation on Broad Peak, the regional government said in a statement Tuesday.The climbers from Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, China, Britain and the United States were swept away by the avalanche Thursday in the Gilgit-Baltistan region, which the Pakistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="175240" data-entity-type="organization">Alpine Club of Pakistan called one of the country’s deadliest mountaineering disasters.Ground teams located the remains of eight climbers and at least three bodies were brought down the mountain on Saturday, officials said.Nirmal Purja, a Nepal-born former British Army soldier widely known as Nims Dai, was among the climbers killed in the avalanche while attempting to scale the peak. His expedition company said Saturday that the world had lost one of mountaineering’s greats. Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday expressed condolences to the families of those killed, saying he was deeply saddened by the tragedy.“My heartfelt condolences go to the bereaved families and to the governments and people of China, Nepal, Oman, the United Kingdom and the United States,” Dar said in a post on X. 1 MIN READ 3 MIN READ 2 MIN READ Dar also offered condolences to the family of Pakistani mountaineer Sohail Sakhi, saying his courage and passion for the mountains would be remembered with pride.“The determination and pursuit of excellence shown by all those who perished embodied the true spirit of mountaineering and will continue to inspire generations,” Dar said. Dar praised the “tireless efforts of our rescue and recovery teams” and said Pakistan remained committed to the ongoing search and recovery operation in close coordination with the Nepal, Oman, U.K. and U.S. embassies.Mountaineering accidents are common in northern Pakistan because of avalanches, falling ice and rock, extreme altitude and rapidly changing weather. A Chinese mountaineer died last year after being struck by falling rocks while descending K2, the world’s second-highest mountain, in northern Pakistan. Bodies of foreign climbers who die attempting to summit mountains in Pakistan are typically recovered at the request of their families and governments. If the family declines a rescue, the remains are left at the spot where the climber died.Khan reported from Peshawar, Pakistan.