Five Russian climbers who appeared to have slipped and fallen on the world’s seventh highest peak have died, an expedition organizer in Nepal said Tuesday.
The Russians were climbing Mount Dhaulagiri, peaking at 26,788 feet, during Nepal’s fall climbing season.
The climbers had been missing since Sunday and a rescue helicopter spotted their bodies on Tuesday, said Pemba Jangbu Sherpa of Kathmandu-based IAM Trekking and Expeditions.
No decision has been made about lowering the bodies from the mountain, which would require considerable planning, manpower and equipment.
Two of the climbers had actually reached the summit. The others had returned without reaching the summit. Radio contact was lost between them and team members at base camp. .
The fall climbing season, which is not as popular as the spring season, began last month. The mountains are less crowded and permit fees are also lower, but the climbing is just as perilous. Last October, the famous Russian climber Nadezhda Oleneva fell to death on Mount Dhaulagiri.
Further details about the five climbers who died this week were not available.
Daniele Frediani/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images
These deaths come just weeks after the deaths of five climbers in the French Alps. Last month, four climbers from Italy and South Korea were found dead on the highest peak in the Alps, Mont Blanc, after being missing for three days in bad weather. The next day, a Danish hiker fell to death in the Mont Blanc massif after slipping off a path.
