Annapurna 2025: Summit and Missing Sherpas

Multiple teams, including 8K, Imagine, Pioneer, and Seven Summits Treks, reported summits on April 6 and 7, perhaps over 45. However, as of 8:ooPM, April 7 local time, two Sherpas are missing between Camps 2 and 3 due to an avalanche. This area was the most concerning for everyone, as South Africans Warren Eva and John Black posted an excellent video update from base camp. Warren summited while John turned back.

Tough Conditions

According to long-time Sherpa climbers, Annapurna is experiencing some of the worst conditions ever. After an abnormally dry winter, the lower mountain, usually snow-covered, is bone dry, and the upper mountain is hard-packed, blue ice. Climbers are not using their mountaineering boots or crampons to reach Camp 1.

Large, wide, and deep open crevasses pose problems. In a twist, heavy snowfall is predicted in a few days, forcing teams to rush their summit plans. The fixed ropes were only to Camp 3, and it was deemed to forgo the traditional Camp 4, so all summit pushes began from C3, making for an extraordinarily long summit push.

Missing Sherpas

I’m getting information from Annapurna that the missing Sherpas were with Seven Summits Treks and working the fixed line between Camps 1 and 2, a well-known area for avalanches despite the dry winter. A RECCO-equipped helicopter arrived at BC at 17:04 and left at 17:11, dusk, to search the area. SST had equipped all of its Sherpas and members with RECCO reflectors.

Dawa Sherpa posted this detailed update:

A huge avalanche swept down from above Camp II (+ 5600meters) at around 12 PM (Nepal time) today on Annapurna and we suffered a terrible disaster. While ferrying oxygen cylinders for the summit push, 2 of our climbing Sherpas, Ngima Tashi and Rima Rinje were swept away. Pemba Thenduk, who was also caught in the avalanche, managed to hold himself and immediately began searching for them. Nawang Thindu and Nima Wangdak were on the route and joined the search. Afterwards, Lakpa Temba and Mingtemba joined. 5 Sherpas began actively searching for the lost men but no luck. Ngima Tashi and Rima Rinje were well prepared and had just climbed Chulu West as preparation climb before heading to Annapurna.

We deployed a Helicopter to locate them as soon as we heard the news and Captain Sobit Gauchan flew until evening to find Ngima and Rima. No luck still. The route between Annapurna Camp 2 and Camp 3 is hugely disrupted by this avalanche. We’ll do our best to fix the line by tomorrow.

Despite our best efforts, we haven’t been able to locate them. We aren’t losing hope and are sending an additional Heli with Search and Rescue team early tomorrow morning.

I am not losing hope. We’ll do our best to locate and rescue our men.

Pray ❤️

Dawa posted this video of the avalanche on his Instagram

Annapurna 2025 Avalanche

RECCO is a novel solution for finding buried skiers. In 1973, before any electronic aids existed, Sweed Magnus Granhed and his friends were left to search for skiers caught in an avalanche with their ski poles. Motivated to find a better solution, they developed a radar-based solution, the RECCO system.

 

Like an avalanche beacon, a searcher must search for the reflector using a unique detector device weighing 1kg/2.2 pounds. The reflector does not require batteries, activation, or a subscription. It is often sewn into a skier’s clothing, usually their ski bibs, but there are attachable reflectors for helmets and backpacks that sell for $38.00. A RECCO SAR Helicopter Detector allows professional rescuers to perform rapid searches for missing people on a larger scale outdoors. Searching with 100-meter-wide corridors, the RECCO SAR Helicopter Detector can cover about 1km2/0.39 miles within 6 minutes.

Summits

Seven Summits Treks gave an update:

We are glad to announce that SST has achieved the first success of the season on Annapurna I. On the 6th of April, our climber Cesar Chinchay (No O2)from Peru successfully summited Annapurna at around 10 am Nepal time, thus, marking the beginning of the success on Annapurna. After fixing the last 500 meters on Annapurna in collaboration with other expedition agencies, the second window’s summit push was in action yesterday and this morning (7th April) we are glad to share that 5 members with 4 Sherpas have successfully summited Annapurna I (8091 m).
Successful Summiters:
1. JORGE EGOCHEAGA RODRIGUEZ
2. SEYEDHAMIDREZA HASHEMI
3. PAULA BIRGITTA STRENGELL
4. AFSHIN ASGHARZADEHLEDARI
5. SIRBAZ KHAN (No O2)
6. MINGMA JANGBU SHERPA
7. RIDAR LAMA BHOTE
8. NGIMA DORCHI SHERPA
9. CHHANGBA SHERPA
Exped. leader @14dawa
Congratulations to all climbers and guides.
We wish the very best to our climbers for the next summit push.

8K Expeditions reported that they also played a key role in fixing the summit route’s fixed ropes and had summit success:

Today on 7th of April 2025, our 8K Annapurna I (8,091 M) Expedition team have successfully summited world 10th highest and one of the most dangerous mountain among 14x8K Peaks. Taking the crucial responsibilities of rope fixing on the last 800m, our senior and most veteran climbing guide Mr. Lakpa Nurbu Sherpa takes The lead with coordination of other climbing guides. 

Details about summiteer name and time are below:  Summit Time: 8:22 AM• Ms. Anni Katri Penttila (1st Finland Female climber to summit Annapurna)

• Mr. Lakpa Nurbu Sherpa  Summit Time: 9:10 AM
• Mr. Bartlomiej Andrzej Paczoski  

• Mr. Sanu Sherpa – Double 14 Peaks Record Holder
• Ms. Liliya Ianovskaia (Oldest woman to summit Annapurna I)
• Mr. Migma Dorchi Sherpa  

• Mr. Dawa Nurbu Sherpa  

• Ms. Zeng Xiaoyun (1st Singaporean climber to summit Annapurna I) 

• Mr. Pem Lakpa Sherpa Summit Time: 9:20 AM

• Mr. Pavlo Sydorenko  

• Mr. Lakpa Nurbu Sherpa  Summit Time: 11:00 AM 

• Mr. Nathaniel James Douglas   

• Mr. Pechhumbe Sherpa

I wish all my  brave summiters a good luck for their safe descent.

We are incredibly proud to announce the successful summit of Mt. Annapurna I (8,091m) by the following courageous climbers:
Climber – WARREN NEIL EVA (First South African)

Climbing Guide – KAJI SHERPA Time: 08:38 AM
Climber – SUNIL KUMAR
Climbing Guide – NIMA TASHI SHERPA Time: 10:15 AM
Climber – NARENDER KUMAR
Climbing Guide – PHURBA SHERPA Time: 10:30 AM
Climber – GURSHIMRAN SINGH
Climbing Guide – PASTEMBA SHERPA
Time: 11:05 AM
Stay tuned – more climbers from our team are on their summit push as we speak. Wishing them safe passage and clear skies ahead!

I haven’t seen any updates on Italian Gianluca Cavalli and Peruvian César Rosales attempting to open a new route on Annapurna’s northwest spur.

Congratulations to all, and I hope the Sherpas will be found safe.

Climb On!
Alan
Memories are Everything

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Previous Everest 2025 Season Coverage Posts

• Annapurna 2025: Summit and Missing Sherpas
• Everest 2025: Weekend Update April 6
• Annapurna 2025: Risky Decisions – April 5 Update
• Everest 2025: Weekend Update March 30
• Everest 2025: Weekend Update March 23
• Everest 2025: Welcome to Everest 2025 Coverage – an introduction to the Everest 2025 Spring season
• Everest by the Numbers: 2025 Edition – A deep dive into Everest statistics as compiled by the Himalayan Database
• Comparing the Routes of Everest: 2025 Edition – A detailed look at Everest’s routes, commercial, standard and non-standard
• How Much Does it Cost to Climb Everest: 2025 Edition – My annual review of what it costs to climb Everest solo, unsupported, and guided

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