The world-renowned Nepali mountaineer Nirmal Purja – a former British Special Forces member – is among 10 climbers caught in a deadly avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak.

Rescuers on Friday said four bodies had been found and efforts were underway to retrieve them despite the harsh weather.

Trackers carried by the climbers showed a rapid loss of altitude, suggesting the team had been caught in an avalanche, but Purja’s tracker shifted location after the initial rapid descent.

A statement by the Alpine Club of Pakistan suggested that an avalanche had struck a group of climbers around midday on Thursday. “The entire team has been out of communication since the avalanche,” the statement added as rescue teams were scrambled in Pakistan in Nepal.

The statement added: “Every possible effort is being made to ensure that helicopter support and all available rescue resources are mobilised at the earliest opportunity, subject to weather and operational conditions.”

Purja’s business partner, Mingma Gyabu Sherpa, who is also a member of the Nepalese house of representatives, said data appeared to show continuing movement from Purja’s tracking device after the initial incident.

“Initially, it appeared that he had been swept downhill by the avalanche,” he told the Nepalese news site Kantipur. “But after the point where the tracking had stopped, the location appears to have shifted again.”

Mingma added that one Pakistani and one Nepali climber had set out overland towards the suspected avalanche site to check reports that one climber’s location appeared to be near the base of the mountain.

“We have received information that one person’s location appears to be near the foot of the mountain. A search team has gone there to verify it,” he said.

Mingma cautioned that they did not have any indication of Purja’s condition, simply that the location of the tracker had shifted.

Purja, also known as Nims Dai, made history in 2019 after climbing all of the world’s 14 peaks over 8,000 metres in just over six months, cutting years off the previous record. He later led the first team to summit K2, the world’s second-highest mountain in winter, a highly coveted achievement.

In person, striking for his confidence and self belief, his rapid chain of ascents of the world’s tallest mountains demonstrated strength and a talent for logistical organisation, using the exploit to showcase what he felt were the overlooked abilities of Nepali climbers.

His profile was boosted after he starred in a 2021 Netflix documentary on the attempt. The previous record for climbing all 14 was seven years. His record was surpassed in 2023.

Purja was leading an expedition for his company, Elite Exped, on Broad Peak, the world’s 12th highest mountain at 8,047 metres (26,401ft), when the avalanche occurred.

The Alpine Club of Pakistan received “deeply concerning” reports on Thursday that an avalanche had struck the team.

The expedition includes five Nepali climbers, as well as US, Pakistani, Omani and Chinese nationals. Another foreign climber was also part of the group, the club vice-president, Karrar Haidri, said.

“The club prays for the safety and successful rescue of all the climbers and stands in solidarity with their families and the international mountaineering community during this difficult time,” it said in a statement.

Purja opted to not use supplementary oxygen for his ascents, justifying his choice by the huge size of the challenge he had set himself.

He joined the British army in 2003 and became a Royal Marine in 2009.

With Associated Press