Rescue to save woman stuck up mountain with broken leg and no food abandoned

Rescue efforts to save a climber stranded 22,000ft up a mountain with a broken leg have been tragically abandoned. Russian mountaineer Natalia Nagovitsina, 47, has been stuck for ten days in dreadful weather on Victory Peak in Kyrgyzstan with scarce food or water. The renowned climber was spotted moving on drone footage as recently as three days ago, after being stranded for a week.

However, temperatures have plummeted to minus 23C and experts have said it would be nothing short of a miracle if she were to be rescued. A sleeping bag had been delivered to her by Italian climber Luca Sinigaglia, 49, who also brought a tent, food, water and a gas cooker, reports the Mirror. Despite repeated attempts to bring her down, both by climbing and using a helicopter, all have failed.

Tragedy struck when Mr Sinigaglia died on the mountain due to prolonged exposure to low oxygen levels and hypothermia. Today, a final attempt to climb to her was abandoned just 3,600ft below where she is stranded. With worsening weather conditions, the team were ordered to return to base camp.

Earlier, a defence ministry Mi-8 helicopter crashed while attempting to rescue her. Another helicopter, a Mi-17VM, was dispatched, but zero visibility forced rescuers to retreat once again. Dmitry Grekov, rescue leader and head of base camp, revealed today that experienced mountaineer Vitaly Akimov had led a team seeking to climb to Nagovitsina but he started suffering back pain from the helicopter crash and the mission was abandoned.

Mr Sinigaglia had also been aboard the helicopter and was praised as a hero across social media platforms. "I turned the whole group around, there were four of them," Grekov said. When asked if she was still alive, he confessed he did not know but said: "I think not, because she has been there since 12 August - count how much time has passed. It is unrealistic. It is unrealistic to survive at such an altitude."

The Kyrgyzstan Ministry of Emergency Situations confirmed the rescue operation had been abandoned. Nagovitsina is renowned because four years ago she defied orders to abandon her husband - who had suffered a stroke at 22,638ft. She survived miraculously after comforting him on the mountain, but was powerless to save him.

In 2021, her radio conversation with base camp became viral as she refused to abandon husband Sergei Nogovitsin at a similar altitude - 22,638ft - who suffered a devastating stroke during a climb of Khan Tengri close to the border of Khan Tengri, close to the borders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and China.

"He can't sit up, falls on his side, his speech is confused," she told rescuers.

"Natasha, you need to go down yourself. You won't be able to help him in any way. Do you understand me? Over."

She replied: "I understand everything, but I will not leave him alone. Natasha, answer.....

"Listening...You need to go down, Natasha, the weather is getting worse, it's almost night. I won't leave my husband, he's completely helpless, I'm giving him something to drink."

So, your decision is to spend the night next to him?"

Rescue teams eventually reached the couple and two men attempted to move Sergey whilst she descended. However, they couldn't travel far, and secured him with ropes, leaving all their warm clothing and food behind, before carving a path further down the mountain to seek additional assistance.

One report stated: "Most likely in delirium....he broke out of ropes and crashed to his death. His body has never been found."

His remains were never recovered.

A year later Natalia once again went to Khan Tengri to install a plaque in memory of her husband. But no one in the new group had any idea what this courageous woman had lived through on that summit a year earlier - a woman who showed the whole world what love and self-sacrifice mean.