Tom Ballard: Bodies found in missing climbers search

The bodies of two climbers who went missing on a mountain in Pakistan have been found.

Briton Tom Ballard and Italian Daniele Nardi last made contact from Nanga Parbat at an altitude of about 20,700ft (6,300m) almost two weeks ago.

On Wednesday it was reported the search had been called off, but resumed when “silhouettes” were spotted on a passage taken by the climbers.

Officials have now confirmed the two “shapes” are the missing men.

Stefano Pontecorvo, the Italian ambassador to Pakistan, said Spanish climber Alex Txikon found the bodies on the Mummery Spur trail.

Mr Ballard, 30, originally from Belper in Derbyshire, is the son of Alison Hargreaves, who died descending from the summit of K2 in 1995 – the same year she became the first woman to conquer Everest unaided.

Ahead of her death, he had moved to Fort William in Lochaber in the Scottish Highlands with his sister Kate and father Jim.

Mr Ballard and Mr Nardi last made contact with their team at base camp on 24 February as they tried to reach the summit of Nanga Parbat – the world’s ninth highest mountain.

With great sadness I inform that the search for ?? and ?? Tom Ballard is over as and the search team have confirmed that the silhouettes spotted on Mummery at about 5900 meters are those of Daniele and Tom. R.I.P.

— Stefano Pontecorvo (@pontecorvoste)

Mr Ballard, 30, originally from Belper in Derbyshire, is the son of Alison Hargreaves, who died descending from the summit of K2 in 1995 – the same year she became the first woman to conquer Everest unaided.

Ahead of her death, he had moved to Fort William in Lochaber in the Scottish Highlands with his sister Kate and father Jim.

Mr Ballard and Mr Nardi last made contact with their team at base camp on 24 February as they tried to reach the summit of Nanga Parbat – the world’s ninth highest mountain.

A number of deaths on the peak, which is notoriously difficult to climb, have earned it the nickname “Killer Mountain”.

Mr Pontecorvo said the bodies were in a place that was difficult to reach but everything possible would be done to try and recover them.

Confirming the news on his official Facebook page, Mr Nardi’s team wrote: “We are devastated by pain; we inform you that Daniele and Tom’s searches are completed.

“Part of them will remain forever at Nanga Parbat.”

They said Mr Nardi was a “lover of life and adventures, scrupulous, brave, loyal, attentive to details and always present in moments of need”.

Searches for the men began days after they last made contact with their team, but these were delayed because of bad weather and tensions between Pakistan and India.

Mr Nardi, 42, from near Rome, had attempted the Nanga Parbat summit in winter several times in the past.

In 2015, Mr Ballard became the first person ever to solo climb all six major north faces of the Alps in one winter.
bbc