The search operation to locate three mountaineers, including Pakistan’s Muhammad Ali Sadpara, John Snorri from Iceland and JP Mohr from Chile, resumed on Monday despite harsh weather severely limiting efforts.
The search team was waiting for another window of opportunity to canvas the mountain, according to Chhang Dawa Sherpa, who is part of the search and rescue efforts.
The three climbers lost contact with the base camp late on Friday and were reported missing on Saturday after their support team stopped receiving communications from them during their attempt to summit the world’s second-highest mountain.
Several experts, including local high altitude climbers Fazal Ali and Jalal from Shimshal, Imtiaz Hussain and Akbar Ali from Skardu, Romanian Alex G?van, Nazir Sabir, Chhang Dawa Sherpa, and other members of the SST winter expedition team, are part of the rescue mission.
Alpine Club secretary Karrar Haideri confirmed that a search exercise was conducted earlier. He added that current weather conditions had made the search operation very difficult. Nepal’s Chhang Dawa Sherpa and Lakpa Dendi Sherpa were picked up from the K2 base camp by Pakistan Army helicopters but the teams eventually returned. “Today we were able to make search flights all over by two Pak Army helicopters with the help of the Army Aviation 5 squadron,” Dawa said in a statement on Twitter.
“Pilots, Lakpa Dendi and I went through the areas that we were aware of to locate the missing climbers. We had less visibility and the upper parts of the mountain are covered in clouds,” he said. “For the last three days, pilots made a great job, out of their limits but we can’t find any clues there. The team is waiting for another permissible weather and search possibility,” he added.
Explaining how weather limits a search mission, Ali Asghar Porik – the head of Jasmine Tours – said a helicopter needs four hours of fly time which requires clear weather. “It takes a helicopter 40 minutes to reach the base camp from Skardu. The chopper goes through the valley and for navigation purposes clear weather is a must.” Above 5,000m altitude, the weather gets harsher and unpredictable, he said. “The mountain should be visible clearly or else the search operation can’t be conducted,” Porik added.
Muhammad Ali’s relatives – Imtiaz Ali and Akbar Hussain – who had volunteered for the search mission on K2, are also said to be on their way back.
“They are both experienced high altitude porters and were instrumental in Sajid Sadpara’s safe descent the other day,” Porik said. “The weather is at its worst right now and we don’t want them to end up in any trouble as getting them out will be very difficult,” he said. “The two feel very strongly about Muhammad Ali since they are from the same family. They are now coming back after we requested that they get down to safe ground,” Porik added. Snorri had hired the services of Porik’s Jasmine Tours for his K2 winter summit bid. Muhammad Ali and his son Sajid were taken onboard as high altitude porters for the expedition.
