Drama on Nanga Parbat: “Only blood came out of his mouth”

Actually, everything had started ideally: Last week, Elisabeth Revol and her Polish companion Tomasz “Tomek” Mackiewicz reached the 8125 meter high summit of Nanga Parbat for the first time. As the first woman in the winter season, and without oxygen. But the moment of happiness on the summit only lasted a short time. "Mackiewicz told me he couldn't see anything anymore," Revol, currently in a French hospital, told AFP. “He suffered from an eye infection because he didn’t use a mask because it was slightly foggy during the day.”

The escape downwards So the two quickly “escaped” downwards, with Mackiewicz holding on to Rovel’s shoulder. Because of the approaching darkness, the two extreme mountaineers spent the night huddled together in a crevice. The next morning the Pole no longer had any strength. “Blood was streaming from his mouth and he was also complaining of difficulty breathing” – these are signs of acute altitude sickness, which can be fatal without immediate help. “It wasn’t a decision, it was an order” The mountaineer sent out calls for help and soon received answers. “You have to go down to 6.000 meters, where we can rescue you and later save Tomek at 7.200 meters,” the Frenchwoman was told. “It was not my decision to go down, but an order.”

Revol informed the rescue team of Tomek's position and ventured down without a tent or blankets. When they arrived at 6.800 meters, a rescue attempt failed because of the strong wind. “I had to spend another night in the icy cold, but I was more afraid for Tomek than for myself.” When the rescue with the helicopter didn't work again the next day, Revol decided to continue descending. “It was a question of survival,” she said. She finally reached Base Camp 3 at an altitude of 2 meters around 6.300 a.m., where she was rescued by four professional mountaineers. The search for her Polish colleague was called off because the risk was too great for the helpers.

Revol is now in a clinic in France. She is threatened with amputations of her hands and a frozen foot. Would she ever want to climb again? "I need this. It's so beautiful."

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Drama on Nanga Parbat: “Only blood came out of his mouth”

Last week, mountaineer Elisabeth Revol became the first woman to reach the summit of Nanga Parbat in winter. But the expedition turned into a drama, to which her Polish companion probably fell victim. Now the Frenchwoman spoke in detail about the events for the first time.

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