‘Below Humanity’: Friend of dying K2 Porter lashes out at mountaineers

Basharat Hussain, a friend of the Pakistani porter Mohammad Hassan, who died at K2 last month, criticised the mountaineers after they allegedly walked past the stuck Pakistani and called their action as “below humanity”.

Videos and photos on social media revealed that a group of climbers walked past Hassan, who fell off a ledge and reportedly died a few hours later at a narrow path known as the bottleneck, some 8,200 metres high.

"The climbers, who scaled the K2 this year, I understand their behaviour was below humanity and it was very saddening, after they walked past the man after he was gravely injured in a fall and they scaled the K2,” said Hussain.

"I think this is the most dehumanising event in my life. It may have not happened in the past, it has not happened in the present, and I hope it will not happen in the future."

An inquiry committee was set up by the government of Gilgit-Baltistan to investigate the tragic death of Pakistani high-altitude porter.

According to a notification, the GB secretary tourism, sports, archaeology and museum department formed the committee which will be led by Iqbal Hussain, director of the department.

Other members of the committee include Rahat Karim Baig, deputy director Baltistan, and representatives from the divisional and district administration, Baltistan tour operators association and the Alpine Club of Pakistan.

However, Norwegian mountaineer Kristin Harila denied the claim and said she and her team tried everything to save Hassan’s life.

"It's a tragic accident... here is a father and son and a husband who lost his life that day on K2. I think that's very, very sad that it ended this way," she said.

"We were trying to save him, we did everything we could for many hours... it's a very, very narrow path.

"How are you going to climb and traverse and carry [a person]? It's not possible."

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