McDonnell among 11 fatalities on K2

PAKISTAN'S TOURISM ministry has confirmed that Co Limerick mountaineer Gerard McDonnell (37) is among 11 climbers believed to have died on K2, the world's second highest mountain.

McDonnell's brother, JJ, his partner Annie Starky and one other family member are expected to fly out to Pakistan this week to meet surviving members of his expedition, including Dutch leader Wilco van Rooijen, who was airlifted to hospital yesterday.

Cork-based adventurer Pat Falvey, who has offered to liaise between the expedition in Pakistan and the McDonnell family in Kilcornan, Co Limerick, said yesterday efforts were being made to arrange a debriefing for family members with Wilco van Rooijen, fellow Dutch survivor Cas van de Gevel and Pemba Gyalje Sherpa.

McDonnell, van Rooijen, van de Gevel, and Pemba Gyalje Sherpa had all reached the 8,611m (28,240ft) summit of K2 at 8pm local time on August 1st.

The Pakistani military authorities flew the two injured Dutch climbers to hospital in Skardu yesterday from the foot of the mountain in the Karakorum range.

Italian mountaineer Marco Confortola, who was also on McDonnell's team, was reported to be descending from the dangerous summit yesterday, in spite of suffering from frostbite and exhaustion. It is thought the Italian may be forced to spend another night on the mountain, and may be airlifted by helicopter to hospital today, as safe flight is limited to 6,000m (19,685ft) in the area.

"Of course, of course, I'll keep going. Imagine if I gave up now," he was quoted as saying by the head of an Italian mountaineering group who spoke to him from northern Italy via satellite link.

Three Pakistani high-altitude porters and an American climber were reported to have set off up the mountain to assist him.

Efforts are still being made to piece together what occurred after an ice fall caught mountaineers from a number of different expeditions on their descent from the summit late on August 1st at a steep and exposed gully known as the "Bottleneck" above 8,200m.

Among the 11 who died or are missing are McDonnell, Norwegian Rolf Bae, Serbian Dren Mandic, and French climber Hugues d'Aubarede, who was the oldest in the group at 61.

Koreans Kim Hyo, Park Kyeong, Hwang Dong, Nepalese Pasang Bhote and Jumic Bhote, and Pakistanis Jehan Baig and Meherban Karim were also named by the Pakistani ministry of tourism as having died on the mountain.

It is believed that the Serbian climber and one of the Pakistanis died on the ascent. Several of those who lost their lives were sherpas and porters trying to rescue fellow mountaineers.

Gerard McDonnell, who is survived by his mother Gertie and four siblings, spent most of his working life in north America and lived in Alaska for the last 11 years, working as an oil engineer.

He joined Cork mountaineer Mick Murphy on the summit of Everest in May 2003. In 2006, he celebrated climbing Mount McKinley, or Denali, in Alaska, by playing the bodhrán on the summit. That year he also made his first attempt on K2 with Mick Murphy, but had to leave when he was hit on the head by a falling rock.