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Rescue operation underway to find several climbers missing on K2

Other News Materials 3 August 2008 12:23 (UTC +04:00)

Fellow climbers and high-altitude porters were on Sunday carrying out a major operation to rescue around a dozen mountaineers from an international expedition stranded on deadly K2 mountain, tour operators said, dpa reported.

The expedition was struck when a big chunk of ice fell below at a height of 8,211 meter, taking a large part of fixed ropes, as 20 to 25 climbers were heading up the 8,611 meter summit or climbing down after conquering it.

At least six climbers - two Nepalese, two Koreans, one Serbian and one Pakistani - were confirmed dead. About a dozen others, including two Austrians, three Koreans, one each from Norway, France and Ireland, and an unknown number of more people are reported missing.

"Our people at the base camp have confirmed the deaths of two Nepalese, two Koreans and one Pakistan porter," Ghulam Hussein, a spokesman of Blue Sky tour operator told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

After the accident at K2, world's second-highest peak, one Nepali climber had managed to descend to the Camp 4 but he went back to help his colleague who was suffering from frostbite. On their way back, both slipped and fell into a crevasse, Hussein said.

An official from Nazir Sabir Expedition tour operator confirmed the death of Serbian climber Dren Mandic.

The fate of missing Norwegian mountaineer Rolf Bae still hung in balance. His other three team members including his wife Cicilie Skog managed to reach at their camps.

"We are still hopeful that he is alive. Around a dozen climbers and porters are trying today to find him and the other missing people," said Ghulam Mohammed, the owner of Mountain Travels Pakistan, the tour operator for the Norwegian expedition.

But he said every effort to contact him on his satellite phone has so far been unsuccessful.

"We know he has a sat phone but it looks like its battery has given out," Mohammed said. "All depends on weather which changes after five minutes over there. Poor weather can hamper the rescue efforts and lessen the chances of survival."

A helicopter operation last month airlifted two Italian climbers on Nanga Parbat, where a third team member died after falling into a deep crevasse.

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