ISLAMABAD : July 3,2023: Pakistani mountaineer Asif Bhatti, a professor at the University of Islamabad, was close to summiting the world’s ninth highest 8,126-meter Nanga Parbat peak, but got stuck due to bad weather.
A large number of climbers are attempting the summit this year, with 52 climbers climbing Nanga Parbat on Sunday, including 11 Pakistanis.
Nanga Parbat is one of the 5 most dangerous peaks in the world where the risk of loss of life is 21%.
ACP Secretary General, Karar Hydari,on Monday said that Asif Bhatti has got stuck at Camp 4 due to low visibility due to snow, which is at an altitude of 7,500 to 8,000 meters, he needs urgent help. Several aid organizations are trying to reach the summit and some of their members have sent word that Asif Bhatti is not visible because of the snow.
He said that a helicopter would be needed to evacuate them from there, but for that they would have to come down at an altitude of 6,500 to 6,000.
He said that Asif Bhatti along with other climbers Lt Col (Rtd) Dr. Jabbar Bhatti, Dr. Naveed, Saad Muhammad and Fahim Pasha had started the expedition to reach the peak a few days ago, but the other members of their team are yet to reach the summit. Did not start the journey.
The Karakoram Club, a tourism organization in Pakistan, said a group of mountaineers from the Karakoram Expedition in the north were preparing to start a rescue operation to rescue Asif Bhatti.
The organization said they are currently waiting for a helicopter to transfer them to another camp.
Young mountaineer Shahroz Kashif has also volunteered to be a part of the rescue mission and he said, “I request the concerned agencies to either take me to the base camp or to the top camp to speed up the rescue efforts.”