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Kyrgyzstan’s mountains turn deadly. Russian climber is stranded in Kyrgyzstan with broken leg and no food as weather thwarts rescue attempts
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47-year-old Russian mountain climber Natalia Nagovitsina is stranded on Pobeda Peak in Kyrgyzstan, the highest point in the Tian Shan range, after breaking her leg. She reportedly has little to no food and water, and weather conditions have hampered multiple rescue attempts. Nagovitsina’s husband died on a different mountain in Kyrgyzstan in 2021 during a climbing trip with her. The next rescue attempt is scheduled for August 20. Here’s what we know about the situation.
Natalia Nagovitsina, a 47-year-old Russian mountain climber, broke her leg while descending from the 7,439-meter (24,400-foot) Pobeda Peak in Kyrgyzstan. She has been stranded at 7,000 meters (23,000 feet) for a week, according to two Telegram channels close to the Russian security services.
The channels’ sources report that Nagovitsina has little to no food and water. Kyrgyzstan’s Emergency Situations Ministry and Defense Ministry have confirmed that rescue efforts are underway, but poor weather is hampering the operation.
According to Telegram channels and other media reports, Nagovitsina was injured on August 12. Her climbing partner administered first aid before going to base camp for help. The following day, two foreign climbers attempted to evacuate her, “but it didn’t work — fatigue and poor weather prevented it,” the channel Mash reported. The climbers reached her and wrapped her in a sleeping bag but were forced to leave her on the mountain.
Mash released drone footage of Pobeda Peak, though it’s unclear when it was recorded. The video shows a torn tent. According to the channel, rescuers concluded from the footage that Nagovitsina is alive and inside the tent.
The Defense Ministry’s press service said the drone spotted the climber at 7,200 meters (23,622 feet). “She is alive and has been in high-altitude conditions for seven days. Preparations are underway for a rescue operation to transport her,” ministry spokesperson Almaz Sarbanov told Interfax. He added that two Defense Ministry helicopters are ready to fly to the site, but deploying aircraft is currently impossible due to heavy snowfall and low visibility.
A source at Kyrgyzstan’s Emergency Situations Ministry told REN TV that rescuers last attempted to reach Pobeda Peak on August 16 using a Defense Ministry helicopter. Due to the weather, the helicopter made a hard landing, injuring the pilot and rescuers from a private tourist company. A second helicopter was needed to evacuate them, and the injured were taken to a hospital.
Kyrgyzstan’s Emergency Situations Ministry said the next attempt to rescue Nagovitsina is scheduled for Wednesday, August 20.
Nagovitsina’s son, Mikhail, told REN TV about his parents’ hobby of climbing. His father, Sergey Nagovitsin, died on another peak in Kyrgyzstan, Khan Tengri, in 2021. According to the Telegram channel 112, Sergey suffered a stroke at an elevation of 6,900 meters (22,637 feet). Despite rescuers’ pleas, Natalia, who was accompanying her husband, refused to leave him on the mountain and descend alone. Sergey died, while Natalia was rescued. A year later, she returned to the mountain and placed a memorial plaque in his honor. Filmmaker Dmitry Sinitsyn later made a documentary about the couple’s story titled “To Stay With Khan Tengri.”
The Kyrgyzstani Defense Ministry reported that several climbers have been injured or killed in recent days in the country’s mountains. A German and a Russian climber were injured while descending a peak, and an Italian climber died. The exact dates were not specified, but the injured climbers and the body of the deceased were also supposed to be evacuated by the helicopter that made the hard landing on August 16. The climbers’ names were not disclosed.
Additionally, on August 11 in Bishkek, Nikolai Totmyanin, a Russian climber and captain of the Russian national climbing team, died after summiting Pobeda Peak. On August 16, Russian climber Alexey Yermakov died on Khan Tengri at 6,800 meters (19,000 feet).
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