Kabar duka masih berkembang dari Pegunungan Karakoram, Pakistan. Longsoran salju menerjang rombongan sepuluh pendaki di jalur barat Broad Peak (8.047 mdpl) pada 30 Juli 2026 sekitar pukul 09.00 waktu setempat, menyapu mereka dari koridor antara Camp 2 dan Camp 3. Pendaki asal Nepal Nirmal "Nims" Purja, yang memimpin ekspedisi tersebut, termasuk di antara mereka yang belum ditemukan. Tim SAR gabungan yang dikoordinasikan Alpine Club of Pakistan telah menemukan empat jenazah hingga awal Agustus 2026, sementara pencarian terhadap Purja dan pendaki lain masih berlangsung setelah sempat terhenti akibat cuaca buruk.

Grim news is still developing from the Karakoram range in Pakistan. An avalanche struck a party of ten climbers on the west route of Broad Peak (8,047 m) on July 30, 2026, at around 9 a.m. local time, sweeping them from the corridor between Camp 2 and Camp 3. Nepali climber Nirmal "Nims" Purja, who was leading the expedition, is among those still unaccounted for. A joint search and rescue team coordinated by the Alpine Club of Pakistan had recovered four bodies as of early August 2026, while the search for Purja and the other climbers continues after being briefly halted by bad weather.

Purja, 43 tahun, lahir di Chitwan, Nepal, dari keluarga sederhana. Sebelum dikenal sebagai pendaki, ia meniti karier militer di Brigade Gurkha Angkatan Darat Inggris, lalu menjadi warga Nepal pertama yang menembus Special Boat Service — unit pasukan khusus elite Angkatan Laut Inggris. Dalam ekspedisi yang berujung petaka ini, Purja memimpin timnya sendiri, Elite Exped, untuk mendaki Gasherbrum II (8.035 mdpl) sebagai bagian dari "Hat-Trick Project" — upayanya mendaki tiga kali seluruh 14 puncak di atas 8.000 meter beserta tiga kali Tujuh Puncak dunia.

Purja, 43, was born in Chitwan, Nepal, to a modest family. Before he became known as a climber, he built a military career with the British Army's Gurkha Brigade, later becoming the first Nepali national to pass selection for the Special Boat Service — an elite special forces unit of the British Royal Navy. In the expedition that ended in tragedy, Purja was leading his own company, Elite Exped, on an ascent of Gasherbrum II (8,035 m) as part of his "Hat-Trick Project" — an attempt to climb all 14 peaks above 8,000 meters three times over, along with the Seven Summits three times over.

Nama Purja mendunia lewat "Project Possible" pada 2019 — target menuntaskan pendakian seluruh 14 puncak di atas 8.000 meter, termasuk Everest, K2, dan Annapurna, dalam waktu tujuh bulan. Sebelum itu, rekor tercepat dipegang seorang pendaki asal Korea Selatan dengan capaian sekitar tujuh tahun delapan bulan. Purja menuntaskan proyeknya dalam enam bulan enam hari, memangkas rekor lama lebih dari tujuh kali lipat. Proyek itu sempat berjalan dengan pendanaan yang morat-marit; Purja bahkan menggadaikan rumahnya sendiri untuk membiayai tahap awal, sebelum akhirnya mendapat dukungan setelah pencapaiannya mulai diakui dunia.

Purja's name became known worldwide through "Project Possible" in 2019 — a bid to complete all 14 peaks above 8,000 meters, including Everest, K2, and Annapurna, within seven months. Before that, the fastest record belonged to a South Korean climber, at roughly seven years and eight months. Purja completed his project in six months and six days, cutting the previous record by more than sevenfold. The project ran on shaky funding in its early stages; Purja even mortgaged his own house to finance the initial phase, before support followed once his achievement began drawing global recognition.

Pencapaian itu kemudian diabadikan dalam dokumenter Netflix "14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible" (2021), yang memperkenalkan sosok Purja ke khalayak lebih luas sebagai figur yang mendobrak batas yang selama ini dianggap komunitas pendakian dunia sebagai sesuatu yang tidak masuk akal. Perjalanannya dari desa kecil di Nepal, tanpa privilese finansial atau jaringan besar dunia pendakian, hingga memecahkan rekor global kerap dikutip sebagai contoh bagaimana keterbatasan awal tidak selalu menentukan batas akhir sebuah pencapaian.

The feat was later documented in the Netflix film "14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible" (2021), which introduced Purja to a wider audience as a figure who broke a barrier the global climbing community had long regarded as unrealistic. His path from a small village in Nepal, without financial privilege or major connections in the mountaineering world, to a global record is often cited as an example of how early limitations do not necessarily define the ceiling of what can be achieved.

Namun perkembangan di Broad Peak pekan ini juga menjadi pengingat bahwa medan ekstrem di atas 8.000 meter tidak pernah benar-benar aman, sehebat apa pun rekam jejak seorang pendaki. Pegunungan Karakoram, tempat Broad Peak berada, dikenal sebagai salah satu kawasan pendakian paling berbahaya di dunia, dengan cuaca yang berubah cepat dan medan yang rawan longsoran.

Yet this week's developments on Broad Peak are also a reminder that terrain above 8,000 meters is never truly safe, no matter how accomplished a climber's record. The Karakoram range, where Broad Peak sits, is known as one of the most dangerous climbing regions in the world, with fast-changing weather and terrain prone to avalanches.

FMI turut memantau perkembangan operasi pencarian dan pertolongan ini, dengan harapan kabar baik segera datang bagi Purja dan pendaki lain yang masih dicari.

FMI is following developments in this search and rescue operation, hoping for good news soon for Purja and the other climbers still being searched for.