Bulgarian alpinist Atanas Skatov died during his K2 expedition in Pakistan on Friday.
Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) said that 42-year-old Skatov’s body fell to a place where the rescue teams could not reach.
Earlier on Friday, a Pakistani army helicopter took off to inspect the area as Skatov disappeared. His body was found and taken by helicopter from K2 Base Camp to Pakistan’s Skardu.
Bulgarian Foreign Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva on social media offered condolences to Skatov’s family and friends.
My deepest condolences to the family and friends of Atanas #Skatov. Admiration to the power of his spirit – his achievements and his unceasing will when climbing the top will never be forgotten! Let us honour his memory! #K2winter2021 #k2winterexpedition2021 pic.twitter.com/glWf6SuOry
— Ekaterina Zaharieva (@EZaharievaMFA) February 5, 2021
“My deepest condolences to the family and friends of Atanas #Skatov. Admiration to the power of his spirit – his achievements and his unceasing will when climbing the top will never be forgotten! Let us honor his memory! #K2winter2021 #k2winterexpedition2021,” Zaharieva tweeted.
Skatov previously climbed Mount Everest, the highest mountain on the globe.
Read more: 60 international climbers to scale K2 summit in a risky winter expedition
The altitude of Everest 8,848 meters or 29,029 feet. With an altitude of 8,611 meters (28,251 feet), K2 in Pakistan is the world’s second-highest mountain after Everest.
Two teams to start a final push to scale K2 Summit
Two teams of local mountaineers have started another attempt to scale K2 Summit in what is called a final push to the Winter Expedition 2021. The teams are determined to scale K2 Summit by February 5th before the temperature worsens.
The two teams consist of local and foreign mountaineers. One team is comprised of Pakistani mountaineer, Muhammad Ali Sadpara, his son Sajid Sadpara and a climber from Iceland, John Snorri. This team has returned to base camp thrice from higher points due to fast winds.
Read more: ‘The people of Pakistan are so nice’ K2 climbers tell the world
Another team, named SST comprising 28 international climbers is set to start the trek on Tuesday and scale the K2 summit by February 5th. The organizer of the expedition said that the climbers were at base camp and were waiting for the weather to become favorable to continue climb to the K2 peak.
Anadolu with additional input by GVS News Desk