Bodies of 5 mountain climbers found 9 months after they vanished in avalanche
The avalanche struck the climbers while they were climbing the 18,470-foot Yalung Ri peak near Nepal’s border with Tibet
NEED TO KNOW
- The bodies of five climbers who vanished in a November 2025 avalanche on Nepal’s Yalung Ri peak were discovered on Aug. 6
- The victims included three foreign climbers and two Nepalis, whose bodies had likely been covered by snow for months
- Officials said efforts to recover the bodies once they were found were initially stalled due to inclement weather in the area
Rescuers discovered the bodies of five mountain climbers who went missing following an avalanche in the Himalayan mountains in Nepal in 2025.
“Five bodies, three foreigners and two Nepalis, who had been missing since last November, have been discovered,” Biswash Karki, chairman of Gaurishankar Rural Municipality, said in a statement to AFP, per the New Straits Times.
The avalanche struck the climbers while they were climbing the 18,470-foot Yalung Ri peak near Nepal’s border with Tibet, he added.
Karki said authorities discovered the bodies on Thursday, Aug. 6, and that they were working to recover them, per the outlet.
“Ever since they went missing, we had been deploying the army, police and local rescue teams to search for them, but thick snow had covered their bodies,” he added.
Karki further said that the foreign travelers were Italian, Italian-Canadian and German, according to the outlet.
The identities of the five climbers have not been released at this time.
Dolakha District Police (DDP) Chief Manoj Kumar Lama told AFP that a rescue helicopter was sent to the area on Friday, Aug. 7, but the rescue team had been unable to reach the remains of the climbers “due to bad weather,” per the New Straits Times.
“Our rescue team will airlift the bodies once the weather clears,” he added.
DDP did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
According to Reuters, the three foreign hikers were being guided by sherpas from the Dreamers Destination hiking company.
While speaking to the outlet, Phurba Tenjing Sherpa, a guide for the company who was reportedly near the recovery site following the discovery of the climbers’ remains, said the bodies may have been found due to the warming seasonal weather.
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“The bodies may have come out after the snow melted,” he said in a statement to the outlet.
