Rescuers race against time to save Russian climbers stuck on Gasherbrum IV

GILGIT: Army Aviation helicopters on Monday launched a mission to rescue two stranded Russian climbers at Gasherbrum IV (7,925m) who were on a mission to retrieve the body of their countryman, who had perished on the mountain a year ago.

Shigar Deputy Commissioner Waliullah Falahi told Dawn that the helicopters dropped four local high-altitude mountaineers and one Russian climber at an altitude of 6,000 metres.

The team will attempt to bring down the climbers stranded at a height of 6,400m as helicopters can’t land above 6,000m.

The two stranded climbers — Mikhail Mironov and Sergei Mironov — were part of a five-member team attempting to ascend the mountain when they were hit by a snow avalanche at 6,400m altitude on Saturday.

Five-man team was on mission to retrieve body of countryman, who perished during an expedition last year

The two climbers got stranded after being injured. One of their partners, Sergei Nilov, went missing, while two others, Alexy Bautin and Evgeni Lablokov, remained unhurt and were later rescued by the army and airlifted to Skardu on Sunday.

So far, there is no information about Mr Nilov’s location, according to Karrar Haideri, the Alpine Club of Pakistan secretary. He added that the condition of the two injured climbers was “critical”, with “little hope that they will survive beyond the next day”.

The rescue team is expected to reach the stranded Russian climbers today (Tuesday) and bring them down to Camp 1, from where the Army Aviation helicopters will airlift them to Skardu.

Mr Bautin, one of the climbers rescued on Sunday, told Dawn that four local climbers and one of their team members, Mr Lablokov, had been dropped at the mountain to save the stranded climbers.

He said he was in contact with his stranded colleagues through satellite communication, and their conditions were stable.

Mr Lablokov will guide the rescue team to locate their stranded colleagues, Mr Bautin added.

“The rescue team members are currently at 6,100m and will start climbing to reach the stranded climbers on Tuesday (today) morning.”

The Army helicopters that tried to drop food items for the stranded climbers through a sling on Monday couldn’t reach them and had to drop them at a distance.

The mission

Ghulam Muhammad, the tour operator for the five climbers, said helicopters couldn’t operate on Sunday after the first sortie — during which two climbers were rescued — due to poor weather conditions at the mountain.

In a press release, Mr Haideri of the Alpine Club of Pakistan said the team of five Russian climbers set out on a mission to retrieve the body of their fellow climber, Dmitry Golovchenko, who went missing on the mountain in 2023.

Their expedition, “marked by determination and camaraderie”, was meant to bring closure to a tragic loss.

The army helicopters would launch another rescue effort to locate the three missing climbers, including Mr Nilov, he said.

“The situation on Gasherbrum IV remains dire, with the outlook for the remaining team members growing increasingly bleak.”

“This tragedy underscores the harsh and unpredictable dangers of high-altitude mountaineering, where even the best-prepared expeditions can face life-threatening challenges,” Mr Haideri said in the press release.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2024