Five Russian climbers die during Dhaulagiri expedition

The bodies of all five climbers are still on the mountain, according to police.

Mt Dhaulagiri. Photo: Seven Summit Treks

Kathmandu: Five Russian climbers lost their lives during an expedition in the Dhaulagiri mountain.

The climbers—Alexander Dusheyko, Oleg Kruglov, Vladimir Chistikov, Mikhail Nosenko, and Dmitrii Shpilevoi—were reported missing on October 6 after falling from an altitude of 7,600 meters.

Their bodies were located at 7,100 meters by a rescue helicopter following a search operation on Tuesday. They lost contact after departing from their high camp at 6:00 AM for their summit push, with their last communication occurring around 11:00 AM.

Valerii Shamalo, a member of the team who had abandoned the summit attempt, was rescued from Camp I and brought to Kathmandu for medical evaluation.

The group of 14 Russian citizens arrived in Nepal about three weeks ago for the climbing expedition organized by IAM Trekking & Expeditions. 

During the search operation on Tuesday morning, a helicopter belonging to Heli Everest found two climbers at Base Camp and one at Camp I. 

The bodies of all five climbers are still on the mountain, according to police.