*SKARDU: Pakistani mountaineer Muhammad Ali Sadpara — along with climber from Iceland John Snorri, is reported to be missing during his winter ascent on K2 and contact with the 3-member expedition has not been established for the last 25 hours. *
The climbers went missing while returning to the basecamp 4, while Sajjid Sadpara reached basecamp 3 last night.
A rescue operation has now been launched to locate the missing climbers. Two helicopters of the Pakistan Army rescue team are taking part in the operation.
Sadpara along with his team was on a mission to summit the mountain in winter without oxygen.
Bulgarian climber Atanas Georgiev Skatov link conceded a fall while descending from camp 3 of K2 summit was declared dead on Friday after his body was found by Pakistan Army, said sources.
Skatov had fallen, yesterday, while making it back to K2 basecamp from camp 3 where he’d climbed but on his way back he disappeared.
Later his body was found by the rescue teams of the Pakistan Army.