Chinese Climber Dies on K2 After Reaching Summit

A recovery team set out on Thursday to retrieve the body of Guan Jing, a Chinese climber who died just a day after summiting K2, the world's second-highest mountain. According to a local official, Guan was killed by falling rocks on Tuesday while descending the perilous slopes of K2 in Pakistan's Gilgit-Baltistan region, per CBS News and the AP. The Independent reports that Guan was in her early 40s. Her body remains stranded at an elevation roughly 330 to 500 feet above the mountain's advanced base camp, itself situated at about 17,700 feet. Persistent bad weather has so far prevented helicopter rescue efforts.

The expedition, organized by a Nepali company, faced further challenges when a Nepali Sherpa named Jangbu was injured during an earlier attempt to bring Guan's body down. Jangbu was subsequently airlifted to a hospital in Skardu for treatment. K2, which stands at 28,251 feet, is notorious for its difficult terrain, frequent rockfalls, and unpredictable weather. Its fatality rate is considerably higher than that of Everest, and deadly incidents aren't uncommon.

Last month, a Pakistani mountaineer died in a rockslide on the same peak, and in 2021, Scottish climber Rick Allen lost his life in an avalanche on K2. The recent death of German Olympian Laura Dahlmeier on a nearby mountain further highlights the risks. Dahlmeier's family requested no retrieval attempt be made, mindful of the dangers that rescue missions can pose to others.