Image copyright Frank Bienewald/Getty Image caption Nepal is home to eight of the world's 14 highest peaks

Nine climbers died when a violent snowstorm destroyed their camp on a Himalayan peak in western Nepal.

A five-member South Korean expedition team and four Nepali guides were at the base camp of Mount Gurja when the storm struck, police said on Saturday.

The crew of a rescue helicopter began retrieving the victims on Sunday, after attempts the day before were halted by strong winds.

The freak accident scattered the bodies as far as 500m (1,640ft) away.

"The recovery mission is in progress," police spokesman Sailesh Thapa told the BBC. "The incident happened due to a snowstorm."

Image copyright AFP/Getty Image caption Kim Chang-ho has won awards for his mountaineering efforts

Local media report that experienced climber Kim Chang-ho, the first South Korean to reach the summits of the world's 14 highest mountains without using supplemental oxygen, is among the dead.

"The camp was completely destroyed," the BBC heard from Myagdi district official Liladhar Adhikari. "It is not clear what went wrong.

"We assume that the camp may have been set up at a higher altitude than normal, but we will know what exactly happened after a thorough investigation."

Expedition organisers raised the alarm after losing contact with the group, which set off on 7 October, for nearly 24 hours.

The climbers - led by Kim - had been waiting for a window of good weather so they could reach the summit, when the storm hit Friday.

The base camp, which is at least one-day's trek from the nearest village, is at 3,500m (11,483ft), on the 7,193m-high mountain.

The rarely-climbed Mount Gurja sits in Nepal's Annapurna region, next to avalanche-prone Dhaulagiri, the world's seventh highest mountain.

According to the Himalayan Database, no-one has stood on Gurja's summit since 1996.

Only 30 people have successfully climbed to its peak compared with more the than 8,000 people who have reached the summit of the world's highest mountain, Everest.</s>KATHMANDU: All nine members of a South Korean climbing expedition were confirmed dead Saturday (Oct 13) after a violent snowstorm devastated their camp on Nepal's Mount Gurja, one of the deadliest mountaineering accidents to hit the Himalayan nation in recent years.

The bodies of eight climbers - four South Koreans and four Nepali guides - were spotted among the wreckage of their camp by a rescue team early Saturday morning, but strong winds and icy conditions were hampering the search effort.

A fifth South Korean climber was initially reported missing, but officials have now confirmed that he was at the camp when the deadly storm hit and is believed to have also perished.

"A mountain expedition of five South Korean nationals and four foreigners were swept off by strong winds at the base camp during their climb to Mount Gurja. (They) fell off a cliff and died," the South Korean foreign ministry said in a statement.

Helicopter pilot Siddartha Gurung was among the first people to reach the site after the deadly storm and described a scene of total destruction with the tents flattened and the climber's bodies scattered across the area.

"Everything is gone, all the tents are blown apart," Gurung told AFP.

Gurung landed a helicopter just above the expedition team's camp, but icy and unstable conditions meant they were unable to retrieve any of the bodies.

Nepal's tourism department said a second helicopter was being sent to the site Saturday afternoon.

"A helicopter has been sent for second rescue attempt but we are not sure whether it can get close to the incident site," said spokeswoman Mira Acharya.

The storm is the deadliest incident to hit Nepal's mountaineering industry since 18 people were killed at the Mount Everest base camp in 2015 in an avalanche triggered by a powerful earthquake.

The previous year, 16 Sherpas were killed on Everest when an avalanche swept through the Khumbu Icefall.

Wangchu Sherpa, managing director of Trekking Camp Nepal, who organised the expedition, said they raised the alarm after they had not heard from the South Korean team for nearly 24 hours.

"After they (the climbers) were out of contact since yesterday we sent people from the village and a helicopter to search for them," he said.

The group of South Korean climbers and their Nepali guides had been camped at the foot of the 7,193m Mount Gurja since early October, waiting for a window of good weather so they could attempt to reach the summit.

Feted South Korean climber Kim Chang-ho, who in 2013 became the fastest person to summit the world's 14 highest mountains without using supplemental oxygen, was leading the expedition, according to a government-issued climbing permit seen by AFP.

The permit listed four South Korean climbers, but a fifth member had joined the team later, according to Suresh Dakal of Trekking Camp Nepal.

Rarely-climbed Gurja lies in Nepal's Annapurna region, next to avalanche-prone Dhaulagiri - the world's seventh-highest mountain.

Gurja was first summited in 1969 by a Japanese team but no one has stood on its summit for 22 years, according to the Himalayan Database.

The South Korean team were planning to scale the mountain via a never-climbed route, according to the Korean Alpine Federation.

Four climbers have perished on Gurja's flanks and a total of 30 have successfully reached its peak - a fraction of the more than 8,000 people who have summited Everest, the world's highest mountain.

Thousands of climbers flock to Nepal each year - home to eight of the world's 14 highest peaks - creating a lucrative mountain tourism industry that is a vital source of cash for the impoverished country.</s>KATHMANDU (Reuters) - A group of five South Korean climbers and four Nepali climbers and porters has been reported missing after a storm hit a camp on a Himalayan peak in west Nepal, officials said on Saturday.

Tourism Ministry official Rameshwar Niraula said the storm struck the group at the base camp of Mount Gurja, a mountain of 7,913 metres (25,961 feet), on Saturday. The official said the camp had been destroyed.

Wangchu Sherpa, head of the Trekking Camp Nepal agency that provided local support to the South Korean team, said the camp had been devastated, citing the pilot of a rescue helicopter that was sent to look for the missing group on Saturday morning.

Niraula didn’t disclose the names of the missing climbers and porters and gave no further details of the incident, which involves the largest group to be hit by a climbing accident in Nepal in two years.

The area lies about 216 km (130 miles) northwest of Kathmandu in the region where the world’s seventh-highest mountain, Dhaulagiri, is located.

Wangchu Sherpa, of the Trekking Camp Nepal agency, said the rescue helicopter sent to look for the climbers could not land due to poor visibility.

“Our rescue operation is continuing and we are trying to find details,” he told Reuters, without identifying the missing.

Nepal is home to eight of the world’s 14 highest mountains including Mount Everest, and the autumn climbing season is now at its peak. Income from foreign climbers is a major source of revenue for the cash-strapped nation.</s>KATHMANDU(AFP) - At least eight climbers from a South Korean expedition have died on Nepal's Mount Gurja after their camp was devastated by a violent snowstorm, officials said on Saturday (Oct 13).

The bodies of eight climbers, including their Nepali guides, were spotted among the wreckage of their camp by a rescue team early Saturday morning, but unstable and icy conditions were hampering the search effort.

"We assume the incident happened because of a snowstorm because trees are broken and the tents. Even the dead bodies are scattered," police spokesman Sailesh Thapa told AFP.

Thapa said a ninth climber may also be missing. A helicopter reached the site and managed to land just above the expedition team's camp, but were unable to retrieve any of the bodies.

"Everything is gone, all the tents are blown apart. The conditions were too icy to continue the search," pilot Siddartha Gurung told AFP.

Gurung said a rescue team would hopefully return to the camp on Sunday, if conditions improved.

Wangchu Sherpa of Trekking Camp Nepal, who organised the expedition, said they raised the alarm after they had not heard from the team for nearly 24 hours.

"After they (the climbers) were out of contact since yesterday we sent people from the village and a helicopter to search for them," he said.

The group of South Korean climbers and their Nepali guides were camped at the foot of 7,193 m Mount Gurja, waiting for a window of good weather so they could attempt to reach the summit.

Feted South Korean climber Kim Chang-ho, who in 2013 became the fastest person to summit the world's 14 highest mountains without using supplemental oxygen, is reportedly among the dead, according to local media.

Rarely-climbed Gurja lies in Nepal's Annapurna region, next to avalanche-prone Dhaulagiri - the world's seventh highest mountain.

Gurja was first summited in 1969 by a Japanese team but no one has stood on its summit for 22 years, according to the Himalayan Database.

Four climbers have perished on its flanks and a total of 30 have successfully reached its peak - a fraction of the more than 8,000 people who have summited the world's highest mountain, Everest.

Thousands of climbers flock to Nepal each year - home to eight of the world's 14 highest peaks - creating a lucrative mountain tourism industry that is a vital source of cash for the impoverished country.</s>At least nine climbers were killed when an avalanche destroyed their base camp on Mount Gurja Himal in Nepal, their expedition organiser said on Saturday. The deceased include five South Koreans.

Trekking Camp Nepal Managing Director Wangchu Sherpa said the Nepalese climbers who were killed have been identified as Chhiring Bhote and Lakpa Sangbu Bhote from Shankhuwasabha district, Natra Bahadur Chantel from Myagdi district, and Phurbu Bhote. Five South Korean climbers – belonging to the group Koreanway Gurja Himal Expedition 2018 – including team leader Kim Chang-ho, were killed in the avalanche on Friday evening, The Himalayan Times reported. The other South Korean climbers who died have been identified as Lee Jaehun, Rim Il-jin, Yoo Youngjik, and Jeong Joon-mo.

Mountaineer Kim Chang-ho was the first Korean to climb 14 peaks above 8,000 metres without using supplemental oxygen, The Himalayan Times reported.

The victims had begun scaling the mountain on October 7, PTI reported. Sherpa said they were waiting at the base camp at an altitude of 3,500 metres for fair weather, when a heavy snowstorm followed by a landslide killed them. A rescue helicopter was dispatched to the area on Saturday morning, but it is not clear if it found any survivors.</s>Nine members of a South Korean climbing expedition were killed after a violent snowstorm swept them off a cliff on Nepal's Mount Gurja, one of the deadliest mountaineering accidents to hit the Himalayan nation in recent years.

The bodies of eight climbers -- four South Koreans and four Nepali guides -- were spotted near the wreckage of their camp by a rescue team Saturday morning, but strong winds were hampering the search effort.

A fifth South Korean climber was initially reported missing, but officials later confirmed he was at the camp when the deadly storm hit Friday and also perished.

"A mountain expedition of five South Korean nationals and four foreigners were swept off by strong winds at the base camp during their climb to Mount Gurja. (They) fell off a cliff and died," the South Korean foreign ministry said in a statement.

Helicopter pilot Siddartha Gurung was among the first people to reach the site after the deadly storm and described a scene of total destruction.

He said all the tents had been flattened, reduced to a tangled mess of tarpaulin and broken polls, and the climbers' bodies were scattered across a wide area, including some in a river bed some 500 metres (1,640 feet) away from the main camp.

"Everything is gone, all the tents are blown apart," Gurung told AFP.

Gurung landed a helicopter just above the expedition team's camp and attempted to descend to the campsite with a group of local villagers, but icy and unstable conditions meant they were unable to retrieve any of the bodies.

Rescue officials tried to send a second helicopter to the site but it was unable to fly due to strong winds, police spokesman Sailesh Thapa told AFP.

Another attempt will be made Sunday, he added.

The storm is the deadliest incident to hit Nepal's mountaineering industry since 18 people were killed at Mount Everest's base camp in 2015 in an avalanche triggered by a powerful earthquake.

The previous year, 16 Sherpas were killed on Everest when an avalanche swept through the Khumbu Icefall during the busy Spring climbing season. Then in October, a freak blizzard killed more than 40 tourists and their guides in the Annapurna region, a disaster that was largely blamed on poor weather forecasting and lacklustre safety standards in Nepal's poorly regulated trekking industry.

Mountain weather is known for being unpredictable with strong winds capable of throwing a person off balance.

In April, an Italian climber died after he was blown off Mount Dhaulagiri, the world's seventh highest peak which neighbours Mount Gurja. But the Italian was at 6,900 metres when his tent was swept off the mountain, whereas the South Korean team were below 4,000 metres when they were hit by powerful winds.

"The fact that they were so low when it happened is unusual," said experienced German climber Billi Bierling, who was forced to call off her own summit bid on Dhaulagiri last month because of heavy snowfall and high winds.

The South Korean team had been on 7,193-metre (23,599-foot) Mount Gurja since early October, waiting for a window of good weather so they could attempt to reach the summit.

Feted South Korean climber Kim Chang-ho, who in 2013 became the fastest person to summit the world's 14 highest mountains without using supplemental oxygen, was leading the expedition, according to a government-issued climbing permit seen by AFP.

The permit listed four South Korean climbers, but a fifth member had joined the team later, according to Suresh Dakal of Trekking Camp Nepal, the expedition organiser.

A sixth South Korean national was staying in a village in the valley below the mountain when the powerful storm struck and survived, according to a local police report.

Rarely-climbed Gurja was first summited in 1969 by a Japanese team but no one has stood on its summit for 22 years, according to the Himalayan Database.

The South Korean team were planning to scale the mountain via a never-climbed route, the Korean Alpine Federation said.

Four climbers have previously perished on Gurja's flanks and a total of 30 have successfully reached its peak -- a fraction of the more than 8,000 people who have summited Everest, the world's highest mountain.

Thousands of climbers flock to Nepal each year -- home to eight of the world's 14 highest peaks -- creating a lucrative mountain tourism industry that is a vital source of cash for the impoverished country.</s>KATHMANDU - Nine members of a South Korean climbing expedition were killed after a violent snowstorm swept them off a cliff on Nepal’s Mount Gurja, one of the deadliest mountaineering accidents to hit the Himalayan nation in recent years.

The bodies of eight climbers — four South Koreans and four Nepali guides — were spotted near the wreckage of their camp by a rescue team Saturday morning, but strong winds were hampering the search effort.

A fifth South Korean climber was initially reported missing, but officials later confirmed he was at the camp when the deadly storm hit Friday and also perished.

“A mountain expedition of five South Korean nationals and four foreigners were swept off by strong winds at the base camp during their climb to Mount Gurja. (They) fell off a cliff and died,” the South Korean foreign ministry said in a statement.

Helicopter pilot Siddartha Gurung was among the first people to reach the site after the deadly storm and described a scene of total destruction.

He said all the tents had been flattened, reduced to a tangled mess of tarpaulin and broken polls, and the climbers’ bodies were scattered across a wide area, including some in a river bed some 500 metres (yards) from the main camp. “Everything is gone, all the tents are blown apart,” Gurung told AFP.

Attempts to reach the remote camp on Saturday to retrieve the bodies were hampered by strong winds, but a team was preparing to deploy at first light on Sunday if conditions allow, officials confirmed.

The freak storm is the deadliest incident to hit Nepal’s mountaineering industry since 18 people were killed at Mount Everest’s base camp in 2015 in an avalanche triggered by a powerful earthquake.

The previous year, 16 Sherpas were killed on Everest when an avalanche swept through the Khumbu Icefall during the busy spring climbing season. Then in October, a blizzard killed more than 40 tourists and their guides in the Annapurna region, a disaster that was largely blamed on poor weather forecasting and lacklustre safety standards in Nepal’s poorly regulated trekking industry. Mountain weather is known for being unpredictable with strong winds capable of throwing a person off balance.

In April, an Italian climber died after he was blown off Mount Dhaulagiri, the world’s seventh highest peak which neighbours Mount Gurja. But the Italian was at 6,900 metres when his tent was swept off the mountain, whereas the South Korean team were below 4,000 metres when they were hit by powerful winds.

“The fact that they were so low when it happened is unusual,” said experienced German climber Billi Bierling, who was forced to call off her own summit bid on Dhaulagiri last month because of heavy snowfall and high winds.

Dan Richards of Global Rescue, a US-based emergency assistance group that will be helping with the rescue effort, said it was unclear how a freak storm at a relatively low altitude turned so deadly.

“It is hard to understand how this occurred given the depth of (mountaineering) experience among the group,” he said.

The expedition was being lead by feted South Korean climber Kim Chang-ho, who in 2013 became the fastest person to summit the world’s 14 highest mountains without using supplemental oxygen.

The team had been on 7,193-metre (23,599-foot) Mount Gurja since early October, waiting for a window of good weather so they could attempt to reach the summit, hoping to do so via a never-climbed route.

Rarely-climbed Gurja was first summited in 1969 by a Japanese team but no one has stood on its summit for 22 years, according to the Himalayan Database.

Four climbers have previously perished on Gurja’s flanks and a total of 30 have successfully reached its peak — a fraction of the more than 8,000 people who have summited Everest, the world’s highest mountain.

Thousands of climbers flock to Nepal each year — home to eight of the world’s 14 highest peaks — creating a lucrative mountain tourism industry that is a vital source of cash for the impoverished country.</s>Police in Nepal fear nine climbers are dead after their base camp on a Himalayan peak was destroyed in a violent storm, according to reports Saturday.

Police said a five-member South Korean expedition team and four Nepali guides were at the base camp of Gurja Himal when the storm struck, the BBC reported.

“The camp was completely destroyed,” Myagdi district official Liladhar Adhikari was heard saying, according to the BBC. “[A recovery team] could see the bodies of the climbers scattered near the camp.”

Villagers who reached base camp Saturday afternoon found the bodies of four South Korean climbers, two Nepalese guides and another person yet to be identified, while the search was continuing for two more, police official Bir Bahadur Budamagar said, according to the Associated Press.

The two who were missing were also feared dead.

Local media reported that the dead include South Korean climber Kim Chang-ho, the fastest person to reach the summits of the world’s 14 highest mountains without using supplemental oxygen.

AMERICAN SCIENTIST DIES WHILE ROCK CLIMBING IN NEW ZEALAND

Two rescue helicopters were unable to land Saturday due to bad weather conditions.

The climbers were attempting to scale the 23,590-foot peak during the autumn climbing season.

The BBC reported that according to the Himalayan Database no one has stood on Gurja’s summit since 1996.

Only 30 people have successfully climbed to its peak compared with more the than 8,000 people who have reached the summit of the world’s highest mountain, Everest.</s>At least nine climbers have been reported missing after a storm swept through their camp on a Himalayan mountain.

The group, five South Koreans and their four Nepali guides, were trying to ascend Mount Gurja, a 7,193m (23,599ft) peak.

Police reports say the storm struck while the group were at their base camp, which was destroyed.

A rescue helicopter sent to the site was unable to land because of poor visibility but the pilot was able to see the area had been devastated.

The incident involves the largest group to be hit by a climbing accident in Nepal in two years.

Wangchu Sherpa, of the Trekking Camp Nepal agency, which provided support to the climbers, said: “Our rescue operation is continuing and we are trying to find details.”

Officials said it was unlikely the bad weather would clear on Saturday and the base camp is at least a one-day trek from the nearest village.

A police team heading toward the base camp on foot is unlikely to reach the site until Sunday.

Mount Gurja, also called Gurja Himal, while not famous as one of Nepal’s most challenging peaks, is part of the Dhaulagiri range, which is topped by Dhaulagiri I, the seventh-highest mountain in the world.

The Dhaulagiri massif, about 130 miles (210km) northwest of Kathmandu, has been responsible for the deaths of dozens of climbers since the first recorded attempt on one of its lower summits in 1954.

Gurja itself was not conquered until as late as 1969 and is said to have a challenging south face.

Nepal is in peak climbing season at present after the end of monsoon season.</s>KATHMANDU: Nine members of a South Korean climbing expedition were killed after a violent snowstorm swept them off a cliff on Nepal’s Mount Gurja, one of the deadliest mountaineering accidents to hit the Himalayan nation in recent years.

The bodies of eight climbers -- four South Koreans and four Nepali guides -- were spotted near the wreckage of their camp by a rescue team on Saturday morning, but strong winds were hampering the search effort.

A fifth South Korean climber was initially reported missing, but officials later confirmed he was at the camp when the deadly storm hit on Friday and also perished.

"A mountain expedition of five South Korean nationals and four foreigners were swept off by strong winds at the base camp during their climb to Mount Gurja. They fell off a cliff and died," the South Korean foreign ministry said in a statement. Helicopter pilot Siddartha Gurung was among the first people to reach the site after the deadly storm and described a scene of total destruction.

He said all the tents had been flattened, reduced to a tangled mess of tarpaulin and broken polls, and the climbers’ bodies were scattered across a wide area, including some in a river bed some 500 metres away from the main camp.

"Everything is gone, all the tents are blown apart," Gurung told AFP.

Gurung landed a helicopter just above the expedition team’s camp and attempted to descend to the campsite with a group of local villagers, but icy and unstable conditions meant they were unable to retrieve any of the bodies.

Rescue officials tried to send a second helicopter to the site but it was unable to fly due to strong winds, police spokesman Sailesh Thapa told AFP. Another attempt will be made Sunday, he added.

The storm is the deadliest incident to hit Nepal’s mountaineering industry since 18 people were killed at Mount Everest’s base camp in 2015 in an avalanche triggered by a powerful earthquake.

The previous year, 16 Sherpas were killed on Everest when an avalanche swept through the Khumbu Icefall during the busy Spring climbing season.
Five South Korean climbers and four Nepali guides die after a snowstorm destroys their camp on a Himalayan peak in Nepal.