Two Missing Italian Climbers Found Dead in Gorkha

Two Italian climbers, missing since last week while attempting to scale the 6,887-metre Panbari Mountain in Gorkha, were found dead on Tuesday, November 4.

According to Deputy Superintendent of Police Raj Kumar Shrestha, Information Officer at the Gorkha District Police Office, the bodies of 67-year-old Stefano Farronato and 37-year-old Alessandro Caputo were recovered from Camp I. Both were found buried under snow, he said. The bodies were later airlifted to Samagaun by helicopter.

They were part of a team which had been stranded at Camp I and the base camp since last Wednesday while descending the mountain. Farronato and Caputo were reported trapped by heavy snowfall after failing to reach the summit.

Another Italian climber, 65-year-old Walter Perlino, was rescued by helicopter on Sunday, along with Nepali support climbers Pemba Renji Sherpa, Dawa Chhiri Sherpa, and Pasang Tamang, who were flown to Kathmandu for treatment.

Earlier, Himal Gautam, Director at the Department of Tourism, told AFP that contact with the two missing climbers had been lost since Saturday. “The two were stuck at Camp One because of heavy snowfall and have been out of contact since Saturday,” Gautam said.

The tragedy occurred amid severe weather triggered by Cyclone Montha, which brought heavy rain and snowfall across Nepal, stranding trekkers and tourists on several popular Himalayan routes.

(With inputs from AFP and RSS)