Kyrgyzstan’s Emergencies Ministry has not confirmed the discovery of the missing mountaineers. According to the ministry, shoes belonging to the mountaineers were found during a search operation on Aug. 16. Their backpack, sleeping bag and other personal belongings had been found earlier.
Earlier, relatives of the missing mountaineers from Belarus and Lithuania reported that their bodies had apparently been spotted by a drone. However, they warned that it would only be possible to confirm that the missing people had been found after reaching the location filmed by the drone. The search has been suspended due to difficult conditions and the danger posed by melting ice on the summit. The next stage of the operation may take place in late August or early September.
It should be recalled that Belarusians Maksim Palianski and Mikalai Svirydau, as well as Lithuanian citizen Sergey Rubtsov, have been out of contact since Aug. 2. The group was climbing to Kurumdy Peak along the northern ridge. On Aug. 1 at 10:30 a.m., the mountaineers reached Kurumdy Peak. Their last contact was on Aug. 2. The group said they would be ready to leave on Aug. 4 after descending, but they never reached the designated location.