Pakistani investigators will interview international climbers as part of a probe into the death of a high-altitude porter who died last month on K2, the world's second-highest mountain.
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Mohamed Hassan, a local porter, fell from a cliff near the summit on July 27. He was fixing the rope for climbers at the time. The cause of his fall remains unclear.
A video posted by a fellow porter from Nepal on social media appeared to show several mountaineers walking past Hassan's body in a push to reach the peak.
"We have gathered initial information ... and will start interrogating people who were there at the time of the accident," said Rahat Karim Baig, a member of the investigative committee on Thursday.
"The most important statement would be of the other high-altitude porter who was fixing the rope with Hassan and saw him fall. We are going to interview him today," Baig told dpa.
The climbers from at least five nationalities would be interviewed to determine if their help could have saved the porter's life, he added.
Expert Austrian climber Wilhelm Steindl criticised the behaviour of many mountaineers at the scene of the accident.
According to the drone recordings made by his cameraman, around 70 climbers passed the dying man at a narrow point at around 8,300 meters, Steindl told dpa on Thursday. "Maybe they had tunnel vision."
Steindl, who himself has climbed Mount Everest, said it seemed as if many mountaineers did not want to be stopped on the way to one of the world's highest peaks.
He was at K2 for a TV production together with a large team. On July 27, he had returned to the camp at 8,000 meters during an attempt to reach the summit because of the dangerous conditions. According to the team, they only saw the drone recordings later after returning to a camp at lower down on the mountain.
Abu Zafar Sadiq, the president of Alpine Club of Pakistan that regulates tour operators, said the climbers might have decided to push ahead despite the tragedy because there was risk of being hit by avalanches.
Located in Pakistan, K2 is considered far more challenging to climb than than Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world. Reasons include the steep route and the risk of avalanches. Only 300 people have climbed K2 so far.
Australian Associated Press
