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Broad Peak Avalanche Kills 10 as Partial Repatriations Continue

Slow, dangerous recoveries at extreme altitude are exposing how vulnerable Nepali mountain workers’ families are to loss of expedition income.

Overview

  • An avalanche on Broad Peak on July 30 swept through multiple teams and killed 10 climbers, including BritishNepali mountaineer Nirmal Purja.
  • Recovery teams have retrieved and flown several bodies out of the Karakoram, with three Nepalese climbers arriving in Kathmandu on Tuesday and Purja’s remains flown to the UK last weekend.
  • Rescue and recovery work remains hazardous and incomplete because unstable snow, steep terrain, unpredictable weather and limited helicopter reach keep some victims on the mountain.
  • The Juniper Fund has launched a five‑year pledge to give each of the six mountain‑worker families $4,000 a year and is about halfway to its $120,000 goal while separate GoFundMe campaigns for individual families remain short of their targets.
  • The deaths highlight a wider problem in commercial Himalayan climbing: Sherpas and other mountain workers do the riskiest tasks, their families rely on expedition income, and the disaster is likely to renew scrutiny of rescue limits and worker protections.