Himalayas: British climber, Fay Manners, who went missing up 23,000ft mountain found safe after equipment and food tumbled down ravine

Fay Jane Manners from the UK and Michelle Theresa Dvorak from the US were ascending a rocky section of the Chaukhamba-3 peak in India’s Uttarakhand state when they became stranded there, according to officials in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district. The climbers were rescued on Sunday (6 October).

They were first reported stranded on Thursday (3 October) when a rock fall severed their rope, sending their bags – along with crucial supplies like food, tents and climbing gear – into a gorge. The mountaineers also lost most of their communication equipment, but managed to send out an emergency message the same day.

Ms Manners told local reporters on Sunday: “We were pulling up my bag and she (Dvorak) had her bag on her. And the rock fall came, cut the rope with the other bag, and it just went down the entire mountain.” The rescue operation took 80 hours to complete and involved the Indian air force and the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority.

Rajkumar Negi, a spokesperson for India’s disaster management agency, said that two Indian Air Force helicopters dispatched on Friday (4 October) to help with the search were unable to locate the climbers. However, on Saturday a French mountaineering team, which was also attempting to climb Chaukhamba-3, located the stranded climbers and relayed their coordinates to the rescue authorities. The Indian air force said on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, that it airlifted the climbers on Sunday “from 17,400ft, showcasing remarkable co-ordination in extreme conditions”.