GILGIT: The record-breaking hopes of Pakistani climbers Naila Kiani, Sirbaz Khan and Shehroze Kashif were shattered as they had to abort their quest to summit Shishapangma peak in China, after avalanches killed four people, bringing the climbing season to an abrupt end.
On Oct 7, 52 climbers from the US, the UK, Japan, Italy, Nepal, Pakistan, and other countries were attempting to summit Shishapangma (8,027m), the world’s 14th tallest peak when disaster struck with a pair of avalanches.
Ms Kiani and Mr Khan were attempting to scale the peak, while Mr Kashif had reached base camp and planned to start his summit attempt the next day. According to expedition official, an avalanche occurred near the summit on Oct 7 at 7am.
American female climber Anna Gutu and her guide Mingmar sherpa from Nepal died after being hit by an avalanche.
A second avalanche occurred in the same area two hours later the same day, taking the lives of another climber, Gina Rzucidlo, and her sherpa guide Tenjen Lama.
Ms Kiani and Mr Khan were part of Imagine Nepal and were at 7,600m when the first avalanche occurred. Ms Kiani told Dawn that when the first snow avalanche hit their fellow climbers, she was at some distance. She decided to abandon the mission and start descending, although other team members disagreed.
Ms Kiani is the first Pakistani female climber to scale 10 eight-thousanders in the world. She stated that her mission of climbing is no longer to be the first Pakistani woman to summit all 14 eight-thousanders.
After summiting Cho Oyu on Oct 6, Mr Kashif was heading towards Shishapangma base camp to start his only remaining eight-thousander on Oct 7. But the incident shattered hopes of Pakistanis to see him setting records.
In a Facebook post, Mr Kashif said, “You make plans, Allah makes plans, and without a doubt, Allah’s plans are the best.”
Published in Dawn, October 23th, 2023
