Tom Ballard and Daniele Nardi Missing on Nanga Parbat
British climber Tom Ballard and Italian Daniele Nardi and are missing on Nanga Parbat and their last communication was from 6,300 metres on Sunday. Due to political tensions between Pakistan and India, there’s no helicopters taking off, but the Italian government managed to get permission for a rescue to start. The two were trying to climb the 8,125-metre peak via the Mummery Rib on the Diamir side during the winter season.
Ballard is the son of famous British alpinist Alison Hargreaves (who died on K2 in 1995) and doesn’t have as much high altitude experience as Nardi, but is the only person to have climbed the six great north faces of the Alps alone in one winter season. He’s also one of the best all-round British ice/mixed climbers.
Facebook updates as of Feb. 27:
Ballard’s last Instagram post on Feb. 19:
Nardi described extreme cold at such a high altitude in winter: “It’s always been between freezing and not freezing, once you are at -50C or -40C and you have to climb, this is not easy if you’re not experienced and don’t know how to manage your body.
“When I was near at the top of Nanga Parbat some years ago at 7,800 metres in winter, it wasn’t really good. But you are always on borderline between freezing and not freezing, so you have to move continuously to manage your body.”
Pre-Expedtion Nardi Interview
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