Gilgit(National Times)- A recovery team reached the spot where the body of deceased Pakistani climber Asma Mushtaq was suspected to be buried under the snow on Gilgit-Baltistan’s Spantik Peak, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Wednesday.
However, Alpine Club of Pakistan General Secretary Ayaz Shigri later told Dawn that the team could not find the body after several hours of search. He said it was unclear whether the team would continue their search on Thursday or delay the mission, stressing the weather’s importance.
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.
Efforts to retrieve her body were earlier disrupted due to severe weather.
In an update posted to social media, Tarar said that the search team had reached the place where the body was suspected to be. “However, because 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,” he added.
According to the information minister, the rescue team’s search operation had been ongoing for two hours as of around 4pm.
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 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.
