Breaking · Records & People
He Climbed the World's 14 Highest Peaks Faster Than Anyone Alive. Nims Purja Has Died on Broad Peak.
An avalanche between Camps 2 and 3 swept a 10-member team on Pakistan's Broad Peak on 30 July 2026. Four bodies have been recovered (not yet identified); six climbers, including Nims Purja, remain missing as helicopters search. Updated live.
At a glance
- Published · updated
- TopicRecords & People
- Verified againstCNN / Bloomberg / The Kathmandu Post / ExplorersWeb
Nirmal “Nims” Purja spent six years making the hardest thing in mountaineering look easy. On 30 July 2026, the mountains reminded the world how dangerous that work has always been. The British-Nepali climber — the man who summited all fourteen 8,000-metre peaks in barely six months, led the first winter ascent of K2, and this July became the first person ever to stand on fifty 8,000ers — was among ten climbers killed when an avalanche swept their team on Pakistan’s Broad Peak.
Confirmed — 2 August 2026
Nirmal Purja and all nine of his teammates are now confirmed dead. Elite Exped confirmed his death on 1 August; Pakistani authorities have since confirmed the loss of the entire 10-member team — among them Nepal’s Pur Bahadur “Yukta” Gurung, Oman’s Nadhira Al Harthy and American Sarah Mallory Geis — with recovery of the remaining bodies ongoing in difficult conditions. Our full report on the confirmed toll and the five Nepali guides lost that morning: Nirmal Purja is confirmed dead — five Nepali guides died beside him on Broad Peak.
How the story unfolded — as of 31 July 2026
- An avalanche struck at around 9:20am on 30 July, between Camps 2 and 3 (~6,660m) on Broad Peak (8,047m), in Pakistan’s Karakoram.
- Four bodies recovered — two now identified by the Alpine Club of Pakistan as Pur Bahadur “Yukta” Gurung (Nepal) and Nadhira Al Harthy (Oman); six climbers still missing, including Nims Purja, who was leading a 10-member Elite Exped team. His GPS tracker reportedly showed movement after the slide; his condition remains unconfirmed, and most K2 teams have aborted their summit attempts to assist the search.
- Two helicopters carrying rescuers and oxygen have reached Broad Peak; the search for the remaining six continues as weather allows.
- Pakistan has deployed helicopters, drones and ground teams; poor weather initially grounded the aircraft.
According to the Alpine Club of Pakistan, the avalanche hit as the team moved on the mountain’s upper slopes. Some climbers caught in the slide were brought back to base camp in an overland rescue, and the four recovered bodies were found during that effort. The rest of the team had been out of communication since the moment the snow released.
The climbers still missing
The Alpine Club of Pakistan has identified two of the recovered climbers as Pur Bahadur “Yukta” Gurung, an IFMGA guide from Gorkha, and Omani climber Nadhira Al Harthy. Alongside Nims Purja, those still unaccounted for include Nepali climbers Kili Pemba Sherpa, Nima Sherpa, Gyalu Sherpa and Nawang Thindu Sherpa, Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi, Chinese climber Wang Zhong, and American Mallory Geis. Behind each name is a family waiting for word tonight.
The man who redefined what was possible
To understand why this news stopped the climbing world, you have to understand what Nims Purja has done.
Summited all 14 peaks above 8,000m in 6 months and 6 days — a record that had stood at almost 8 years.
Led a team of Nepali climbers up the savage mountain in winter — and did it, alone among them, without supplemental oxygen.
In July, no human had ever done it before — 22 of them climbed without bottled oxygen.
On 21 July he took his 57th 8,000er (Gasherbrum II, no oxygen), chasing a bid to climb all 14 three times over. Nine days later, the avalanche.
A sober reminder
The Karakoram is the most dangerous range on Earth to climb, and Broad Peak — for all that it is counted among the “easier” 8,000ers — has taken many lives. No record, no amount of experience, and no reputation makes a mountaineer safe from an avalanche. Our thoughts are with every family waiting for news.
As of this update, the search continues, with rescue teams racing weather and altitude. We will update this article as verified information emerges.
Sources: CNN; Bloomberg; The Kathmandu Post; ExplorersWeb; Alpine Club of Pakistan. Cover photo: Gwrthanesh via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Cover photo: Gwrthanesh via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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