Organizers of the search for climbers from Belarus and Lithuania who went missing in Kyrgyzstan have commented on a statement by the country’s Emergency Situations Ministry, which did not confirm that their bodies had been found. According to the ministry, only footwear was spotted by a drone.
“The Kyrgyz Emergencies Ministry reported that on 16 August, during the search, the climbers’ footwear was found. That is true, and it does not contradict what we wrote. Boots with crampons are the clearest thing visible on the footage. We have not changed our wording of 16 August and we will repeat it word for word. The footage does not show people, almost everything is covered by snow and rock.
We can see boots with crampons, parts of equipment and clothing, and outlines that we read as bodies. This can only be said with certainty once they are brought down, and identification will only be possible then as well. Nobody has yet reached that place from the ground. That means nobody can confirm the find right now, neither we nor any authority. There is no dispute here and there are no two versions. There is caution in our words, and we consider it obligatory,” the website dedicated to the search for the missing climbers said.
The search headquarters is considering options for an operation to bring them down. The operation requires separate preparations and could take place in late August or September.
Belarusian nationals Maksim Palianski and Mikalai Svirydau, as well as Lithuanian citizen Sergey Rubtsov, have not been in contact since Aug. 2. The group was climbing Kurumdy Peak via the northern ridge. At 10:30 a.m. on Aug. 1, the climbers reached the summit of Kurumdy Peak. They last made contact on Aug. 2. The group said they would be ready to leave on Aug. 4 after descending, but they never reached the designated location.
