SAN ANTONIO – The family of a San Antonio woman who died in an avalanche said they are heartbroken for all the families impacted by the tragedy.
Mallory Geis, 39, was discovered Friday after the avalanche on Broad Peak in the Skardu District of Pakistan, the family confirmed in a statement shared with KSAT 12.
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The family described her as "a bright light who was loved deeply by her family and friends" who “will be profoundly missed.”
They said they are grateful for the outpouring of love and support they have receieved, and are asking for privacy to process the “unimaginable loss.”
Mallory Geis was among a group of climbers who went missing after the avalanche. All 10 were confirmed dead, climbing company Moving Mountains said Saturday.
The expedition was Geis’ first try at an 8,000-meter peak in Pakistan, while it was expected to be the final one for Sakhi, who is a guide for the company, as well as a geographer and high-altitude photographer who has climbed some of the world’s major peaks, according to the Moving Mountains website.
Geis, 39, lived in San Antonio. She announced on social media earlier this year that she was closing her Pilates studio to take “a giant leap of faith into the unknown to see where life goes. I have a sneaking suspicion there will be lots of helmets, harnesses, and crampons involved.”
Kimberly Hardman, a climber based in Alaska, met Geis at a Colorado women’s ice climbing weekend in January and they instantly connected and talked about climbing all over the world.
Geis was relatively new to ice climbing but was a natural athlete with experience mountaineering after climbing in Nepal, according to Hardman, who said Geis respected the mountains and understood the risks of climbing.
She didn’t go into it blindly, Hardman said.
“She was wanting to learn and grow,” Hardman said. “That’s what brought her to her happy place.”
Karrar Haidri, vice president of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, said the climbers lost contact with base camp Thursday while attempting to scale the mountain.
Broad Peak, at 8,047 meters (26,401 feet), is the world’s 12th-highest mountain. It lies in Pakistan’s Karakoram range, home to five of the world’s 14 peaks above 8,000 meters, attracting climbers from around the globe.
The expedition comprised five Nepali climbers in addition to the Omani and American climbers, Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi, a Chinese climber identified only as Wang and one other foreign climber, according to the Alpine Club.
China said it was trying to verify whether any of its nationals were among the 10 climbers missing.
“We will provide assistance to Chinese citizens in need and are also willing to offer help in accordance with the needs of the Pakistani side,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Friday in Beijing.
The expedition leader was the renowned mountaineer Nirmal Purja, a Nepal-born former soldier in the British army widely known as Nims Dai. He climbed the world’s 14 highest peaks in a record 189 days in 2019, an achievement featured in the Netflix documentary, “14 Peaks: Nothing is Impossible.” His record was surpassed in 2023.
Moving Mountains, a travel company based in Pakistan, announced late last month that the expedition team was on its way to the small town of Askole and wished them a safe journey climbing Broad Peak.
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Associated Press journalists Munir Ahmed and Riaz Khan in Peshawar, Pakistan, E. Eduardo Castillo in Beijing, Hallie Golden in Seattle and Josh Kelety in Phoenix contributed to this report.