Team unable to locate Pakistani climber Asma Mushtaq's body on Spantik after hours-long efforts

A recovery team has descended back to Camp 2 from the spot on Gilgit-Baltistan’s Spantik Peak where the body of deceased Pakistani climber Asma Mushtaq was suspected to be buried under the snow, an official said.

The 34-year-old climber died on Aug 20 while descending from the mountain, also known as Golden Peak, after suffering from high-altitude sickness. Her body was said to be at Camp 3, which is located at a height of approximately 6,250 metres.

Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP) General Secretary Ayaz Shigri told Dawn that the six-member team reached Camp 3 on Wednesday, where the body was suspected to be.

However, he added, the team could not find the body after several hours of intense search. He said it was unclear whether the team would continue their search on Thursday or delay the mission, stressing the weather’s importance.

Shigri said it was feared that the climber’s body was buried under snow after the peak received fresh snowfall, adding that there were also high winds at the peak.

Highlighting that the six-member local team consists of highly professional climbers, Shigri said Pakistan Army helicopters were expected to airlift Mushtaq’s body to Skardu after its arrival at the base camp.

The ACP member pointed out that helicopters could not retrieve the body from altitudes over 6,000m.

“Only the ground rescue team can bring down the body from the peak to base camp,” he emphasised.

In a post on social media earlier, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar also noted that as the “place is very large and due to heavy snowfall over the past two days, the body is now completely covered under the snow, making it difficult to locate”.

According to the minister, the rescue team’s search efforts had been ongoing for two hours as of around 4pm.

The team had resumed its search operation on Tuesday once weather conditions improved, after heavy snowfall had halted the retrieval efforts on Sunday.

During her ascent, Mushtaq had successfully reached the 7,027-metre summit of Spantik and was in good health at the time, the ACP said in statements issued on Thursday.

However, she developed a serious high-altitude medical emergency at an elevation of about 6,400 metres during the descent.

High-altitude sickness encompasses a range of pulmonary and cerebral conditions caused by hypoxia, or oxygen deprivation, due to rapid ascent and inadequate acclimatisation to high altitudes.

Shigri earlier told Dawn that Mushtaq was part of a five-member Pakistani women’s expedition team that summited Spantik, which included climbers Zoni Aslam, Zaba Shigri, Shama and Sohana.

Climate change-induced shifts in weather patterns have worsened conditions on the peaks of the Karakoram Range in GB, creating serious difficulties for mountaineers.

Body of US climber shifted to Islamabad

Meanwhile, the body of US climber Sarah Mallory Geis was shifted to Islamabad on Wednesday for repatriation to her country, a day after it was airlifted to Skardu.

ACP’s Shigri told Dawn that the body was dispatched via Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) from Skardu Airport on Wednesday morning. The body was received by an international insurance company that is responsible for its repatriation to her country.

Geis was among the 10 mountaineers who lost their lives after being struck by an avalanche on Broad Peak (8,047 metres) last month. Her body was recovered from Broad Peak 22 days after she went missing in the deadly incident.

Up until now, Geis was one of the last two climbers from the expedition whose bodies could not be retrieved. Earlier, Shigri said that the search for the last member of the expedition, Nawang Thindu Sherpa, was also under way.