Survivor Tells Of Mistakes During Deadly Climb

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — A man who’s been rescued from the world’s second-highest mountain says it wasn’t just an avalanche and the cold conditions that’s believed to have killed at least eleven people.

He says there were mistakes in preparation for the final ascent to the top of K2, located near Pakistan’s northern border with China. It’s regarded as more challenging to conquer than Mount Everest.

A helicopter Monday plucked two frostbitten Dutch climbers from the mountain. An Italian who was also stranded has been making his way down the slope with a rescue team.

A survivor who’s being treated for frostbitten toes says the advance team that went up ahead of time to put down the ropes the climbers would use had put them in the wrong places — including a treacherous area known as “The Bottleneck.”

On his way back down, he says, he passed three South Koreans who declined his offer of help — possibly the same three Koreans who later died.