Five people reportedly died when their ropes failed on Mount Dhaulagiri
Five Russian climbers have perished while attempting to reach the summit of Mount Dhaulagiri in Nepal, according to local media and the Russian embassy in the country.
The group was led by experienced mountaineer Aleksandr Dusheiko, and they were reported missing last Sunday. A helicopter located the bodies at an altitude of 7,100 meters, where they had apparently fallen 500 meters, Mingma Sherpa, director of the airlift company Heli Everest, told the Himalayan Times.
A sixth member of the climbing team, Valeriy Shamalo, abandoned his attempt early and returned to a base camp, from which he was rescued and transported to Kathmandu.
The Russian embassy in Nepal confirmed that it had been in communication with the rescue authorities and had received confirmation of the deaths of the Russian citizens.
According to climber Anna Piunova, Shamalo spent three nights at a camp located above the 7,000-meter mark, before descending to the camp at an elevation of 6,100 meters. He is currently recovering in hospital, she added. The five other members of the group apparently lost their lives after their rope failed, she said.
With a height of 8,167 meters, Dhaulagiri is the seventh-highest mountain in the world, and holds the distinction of being the tallest mountain entirely within the borders of a single nation. It was first summited in 1960 and has claimed dozens of lives over the decades.