Austrian climber killed, two British men rescued on Pakistani peak - army
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani military helicopters rescued two British mountaineers in the north of the country on Sunday after an avalanche that killed their Austrian climbing partner, the military said.
The three climbers were hit by the avalanche at an altitude of 19,300 feet (5,883 meters) on Friday while trying to reach the summit of Ultra Sar peak near Hunza, the Pakistani army said in a statement.
Austrian Christian Huber was killed and the two British climbers, Bruce Normand and Miller Timothy, suffered injuries and were stranded for two days.
The army said bad weather prevented a rescue mission immediately after it was requested on Saturday, but on Sunday morning helicopters reached the area, bringing down the two climbers and the body of Huber.
Pakistan's northern regions are home to several mountain peaks, including the K2, in the Karakorum mountains along the border between China and Pakistan, which is the world's second highest after Mount Everest in Nepal.
Last summer, a Spanish man and an Argentinian perished in an avalanche while trying to scale Nanga Parbat, known as "Killer Mountain" due to the high number of lives it has claimed over the years.
(Reporting and writing by Asif Shahzad. Editing by Jane Merriman)
