Kyrgyzstan’s Mountaineering Federation has confirmed the death of the stranded Russian climber Natalia Nagovitsina.

Sept 2025 : Russian mountaineer Natalia Nagovitsina, who got stranded on Kyrgyzstan’s Pobeda Peak on August 12 after suffering an injury during her descent, has died, according to Eduard Kubatov, president of Kyrgyzstan’s Mountaineering and Climbing Federation. Kubatov has reaffirmed that drones have surveyed the area twice where Nagovitsina was located on September 2, but no signs of life were found. The rescue operation has now been officially called off.

He noted that in the entire history of Pobeda Peak, there has never been a successful rescue at an altitude of 7,200 meters (23,600 feet), where Nagovitsina was stranded. 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 Defence 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 Defence Ministry’s press service said the drone spotted the climber at 7,200 meters (23,622 feet). “She was alive and had been in high-altitude conditions for seven days. Preparations were underway for a rescue operation to transport her”, ministry spokesperson Almaz Sarbanov told Interfax. He added that two Defence Ministry helicopters are ready to fly to the site, but deploying aircraft was impossible due to heavy snowfall and low visibility.

A source at Kyrgyzstan’s Emergency Situations Ministry informed that rescuers last attempted to reach Pobeda Peak on the 16^th. August using a Defence 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 Reporters 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 honour. Filmmaker Dmitry Sinitsyn later made a documentary about the couple’s story titled “To Stay with Khan Tengri”.

The Kyrgyzstani Defence 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).

Team Maverick