Man, 49, Dies Trying to Help Friend Trapped on 25,000-Foot Peak with Broken Leg: 'He Would Never Have Left Anyone Behind'

An Italian climber died connected a Kyrgyzstan upland aft he attempted to thief a chap climber who collapsed her limb and was trapped adjacent nan summit.

According to The Times and nan Daily Mail, 49-year-old Luca Sinigaglia of Milan died connected Aug. 15 from prolonged vulnerability to debased oxygen levels and hypothermia astatine Pobeda Peak (meaning Victory Peak, aliases Jengish Chokusu successful Kyrgyz), located astatine astir 24,406 feet successful nan Tian Shan upland scope connected nan country's separator pinch China.

Luca had summited nan highest respective times successful an effort to bring supplies, including a tent, food, h2o and a sleeping bag, to his friend, Russian climber Natalia Nagovitsyna, 47, aft she fell and collapsed her limb connected Aug. 12.

The outlets reported that Luca died aft he did not make it to nan peak, astir 2,000 feet from wherever Nagovitsyna was stuck.

Luca's assemblage was recovered from an crystal cave, wherever he had collapsed from exhaustion, according to The Times. Doctors said he astir apt died from cerebral edema, aliases an excess of fluid successful nan brain, nan outlet reported.

“He carried retired an enactment of awesome courage. He would ne'er person near anyone behind, and particularly not Natalia, pinch whom he had survived an acquisition that made them very close,” said Luca’s sister, Patrizia Sinigaglia, per The Times. “It was an action to beryllium proud of that unluckily did not let him to return to us. But that was Luca.”

The Italian climber was besides joined by German mountaineer Gunther Siegmund successful nan rescue operation. Siegmund later climbed to safety, according to The Times.

Rescue efforts by respective agencies, including nan Russian Mountaineering Federation and Kyrgyzstan’s Ministry of Emergency Situations, person been underway successful an effort to prevention Nagovitsyna for astir 13 days, according to The Times and CNN.

CNN reported that a surveillance drone past spotted Nagovitsyna connected a ridge adjacent nan apical of nan upland connected Tuesday, Aug. 19, and she was believed to beryllium live astatine nan time. Officials person not yet shared whether they judge her to still beryllium alive.

According to nan Daily Mail, a last effort to climb to Nagovitsyna was aborted astir 3,600 feet from wherever she is trapped connected Saturday, Aug. 23, arsenic upwind conditions person worsened. A chopper from nan Kyrgyzstan Defense Ministry collapsed successful a erstwhile effort to rescue Nagovitsyna, nan outlet reported, and experts are now uncertain that they will beryllium capable to find nan Russian climber successful nan -9 grade upwind and precocious winds that whitethorn person shredded her tent.

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Alexander Pyatnitsyn, vice president of nan Russian Mountaineering Federation, told The Times that it "will beryllium almost intolerable to prevention her," though 3 Italian rescuers are still readying to charter a backstage chopper successful an effort to scope Nagovitsyna.

“There’s a three-kilometer-long ridge, and it takes astatine slightest 30 group successful specified a business to rescue a personification from there," Pyatnitsyn said.

The Times reported that Luca and Nagovitsyna first met successful 2021 while climbing Khan Tengri successful nan aforesaid upland range. Luca, who worked arsenic a cybersecurity expert, helped Nagovitsyna and her husband, Sergei, descend disconnected nan mountain. Sergei later knowledgeable a changeable and died from nan incident.

“After that, they said often, agreeing each truthful often to meet up connected immoderate upland astir nan world,” Luca's sister said of nan two, earlier remembering her relative arsenic personification who wouldn't time off a friend behind.

"He has performed an enactment of awesome courage," she added to nan Italian outlet Ansa. "We tin clasp connected to this knowledge. He would ne'er person near anyone behind."