Nepal mourns climber Nirmal Purja after death is confirmed on Pakistan’s Broad Peak

The British-Nepali climber was renowned for ascending all 14 of the world’s 8,000-metre peaks in a record 189 days in 2019

British-Nepali climber Nirmal Purja, who died in an avalanche in Pakistan’s Broad Peak, was renowned for ascending all 14 of the world’s 8,000-metre (26,000-foot) peaks in a record 189 days in 2019.

His feat was spotlighted in Netflix’s 2021 documentary, 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible.

The 43-year-old was leading a multinational expedition of nine other climbers on the world’s 12th-highest mountain when the avalanche struck at around noon on Thursday, according to Associated Press.

All were confirmed to have died and search teams were trying to recover their bodies, Purja’s expedition company, Elite Exped, told the news agency on Saturday.

“The world has lost one of mountaineering’s greatest climbers,” Elite Exped said in a statement, adding that it mourned all the lives lost. “No words can ease the pain of this unimaginable loss.”

The expedition consisted of five Nepali climbers, as well as US, Pakistani, Omani and Chinese nationals, spread over four teams.