KATHMANDU: Search and rescue operations on Broad Peak (8,047m) resumed today after being suspended Friday due to severe weather and heavy snowfall, as efforts continue to locate mountaineer Nirmal "Nimsdai" Purja and several other climbers still missing following Thursday's avalanche.

A three-member rescue team led by MP Mingma David Sherpa has arrived in Pakistan to join the operation, with a support team from the United Kingdom expected to follow shortly. These specialists join Pakistan Army personnel and high-altitude rescue units already on the ground.

According to the Gilgit-Baltistan Administration, additional Sherpa teams are joining today's push as weather conditions allow both helicopter and ground search efforts to proceed. Drone reconnaissance has reportedly located additional bodies near the avalanche site, though hazardous terrain and weather have so far prevented recovery.

Ground search teams led by Nepali legendary mountaineer Mingma Gyalje Sherpa (Mingma G) and Pakistani legendary climber Sirbaz Khan have already headed to the locations on Broad Peak where drone footage identified possible signs of the missing climbers. According to Pakistani veteran climber Naila Kiani, rescuers will first assess the area and confirm that it is no longer at risk of further avalanches before proceeding.

Purja remains officially listed as missing. The avalanche struck a 10-member international expedition on Thursday near Lower Camp III; two bodies were recovered by ground teams on Friday.

Purja, a Nepali-British mountaineer, gained global recognition for summiting all 14 of the world's 8,000-meter peaks in just over six months in 2019, and later became the fastest person to complete the feat without supplementary oxygen.

This is a developing story — Tourism Times will provide updates as rescue operations continue.