After hours of waiting and hope, the much feared confirmation has arrived: Nirmal Purja is among the victims of the expedition to Broad Peak (Pakistan). An avalanche overwhelmed the 10 climbers on July 30th, and from that moment the desperate searches began. The Nepalese, known as “Nimsdai”, is one of the greatest mountaineers ever.
The confirmation
The sad confirmation was given by Elite exped, the mountaineering expedition agency founded by Purja. “Today, with deep sadness and immense grief, we confirm that Nirmal ‘Nimsdai’ Purja has tragically lost his life following the avalanche on Broad Peak. We have also received confirmation that other members of the expedition, sadly, did not survive.” Among the victims are the trusted companions Pur Bahadur Gurung (Yukta) and Nima Sherpa. “Our deepest thoughts, prayers and deepest condolences go out to their families, friends and all the people who loved them,” the agency writes.
Purja’s memory is moving: “The world has lost one of the greatest mountaineers ever; a leader who inspired millions of people thanks to his courage, his humility and his unshakable belief that human potential is much greater than we often imagine”. A great mountaineer who “wanted to show the world what was possible when you have the courage to dream big, believe in yourself and refuse to accept your limits”.
The expedition included three other Nepalese (Gyalu, Nwang Thendu, Kili Pemba), a Pakistani (Sohail Sachi), an American (Mallory Geis), an Omani (Nadhira Al Harthy) and a Chinese (Wang Zhong).
On July 30, 2026, a massive avalanche struck a summit-bound international mountaineering team on Broad Peak (8,047 meters) in Pakistan’s Karakoram range, leaving four climbers confirmed dead and six others still missing. The accident occurred around midday at an altitude of… pic.twitter.com/wTAI4arUTs
— Tranquil Kilimanjaro Treks (@TripKilimanjaro) July 31, 2026
The Nepalese Prime Minister: “They are all dead”
Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah has confirmed the “tragic” death of British Nepalese mountaineer Nirmal Purja and his nine climbing companions. Rescuers recovered the remains of the three climbers (an American woman, an Omani woman and a Nepalese). Data from the climbers’ tracking devices indicates that they fell hundreds of meters down the mountain.
Purja’s life
Purja, Nepalese, was 43 years old. He was a former British Army soldier in the Gurkha Brigade, the units made up of Nepalese soldiers serving the United Kingdom. His motto has always been “always a little higher”. As stated on his website, it all started in December 2012, when, on leave from service in the special forces, he undertook a trek to Everest base camp. Shortly afterwards he successfully reached the summit of Lobuche Est, 6119 meters high, together with his guide. His first summit.
In 2019 he achieved the feat of climbing all 14 mountains higher than eight thousand meters in just over six months, setting a record that would later be beaten a few years later. In 2021 he was the protagonist of the Netflix documentary 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible. Purja also participated in the 2021 expedition that climbed K2, the world’s second highest mountain, in winter for the first time.
Purja was awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the Christian Empire) by Queen Elizabeth for his outstanding achievements in high altitude mountaineering, in particular for the rescue carried out in 2016, which prevented the failure of the Gurkha expedition, and for his exploits on the highest peaks of the Eight Thousand in 2017.