British climber missing on 23,000ft mountain after ‘equipment lost in ravine’

Fears are growing for the safety of a British climber and her American counterpart after their food and equipment fell down a ravine.

Brit Fay Manners, 37, and Michelle Dvorak, 31, have been missing since Thursday when they were climbing Chaukhamba Mountain in India.

Both Brit and Michelle sent messages to base camp saying they were in trouble, and two helicopters were sent up immediately.

The rescue mission was quickly stopped due to weather conditions, however.

India’s army and air force are joining the effort to find the two climbers, with the head of the rescue operation saying: ‘We hope to evacuate these two ladies as soon as possible.’

Fay and Michelle haven’t been heard from since sending their message to base camp Thursday.

The two are both experienced climbers and had permission from the Indian Mountaineering Foundation before they set off.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said it is ‘supporting the family of a British woman reported missing in India’.

In September, four climbers who disappeared in a storm on Mont Blanc in France were found dead close to the summit of the Alps’ highest peak.

The Chamonix-Mont Blanc search and rescue team found the four mountaineers – identified as two Italians and two South Koreans – on Tuesday afternoon.

Rescue officials confirmed they all died of hypothermia after temperatures at the peak reached -22°C.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.