Russian climber stranded on victory peak could not be saved

Kyrgyz authorities have called off efforts to rescue Russian climber Natalia Nagovitsina, who has been stranded on Victory Peak since Aug. 12 at an altitude of 7,200 meters.

Officials planned a final attempt on Aug. 25, using a drone to locate Nagovitsina and, if signs of life were found, to dispatch a helicopter. But bad weather prevented the drone flight, Emergency Ministry spokesman Adil Chargynov said: “We were waiting for a weather window so it could take off. But good weather never came.”

Nagovitsina, 47, had been climbing since 2016 and had scaled four of the five peaks over 7,000 meters required for the “Snow Leopard” title. The August 2025 ascent included Russian Roman Mokrinsky, German Guenter Sigmund and Italian Luca Siniglia. During the climb, she broke her leg after slipping from a ridge. The group left her in a tent with food and a sleeping bag and went for help. Siniglia died during the descent.

On Aug. 16, a Kyrgyz Defense Ministry helicopter attempted an evacuation but made a hard landing due to weather, injuring the pilot and rescue leader Viktor Akimov. A second helicopter mission was aborted after Akimov’s back injury worsened. On Aug. 23, the ministry said all rescue efforts had been halted.