Pakistan avalanche: Four bodies recovered after Nirmal Purja and other climbers missing on Broad Peak

Rescue efforts are underway to find a group of missing climbers including world-renowned mountaineer Nirmal Purja following an avalanche on a mountain in Pakistan, the Alpine Club of Pakistan said. Emergency crews on the ground and in helicopters are scouring the Karakoram mountain range for the 10 climbers, including one American, who are believed to be have been on 8,047-meter-tall Broad Peak when an avalanche struck around midday Thursday. Four bodies have been recovered by ground teams so far, said Irfan Arshad Khan, the Alpine Club’s president. They have not been identified. Along with 43-year-old Purja and American Mallory Geis, the group included climbers from Oman, Pakistan and Nepal, according to the Alpine Club. CNN has reached out to the US State Department. None of them have been heard from since the avalanche.