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Media captionThe video was shot on an action camera used by the group
Indian authorities have released a video showing the final moments of a team of climbers whose bodies were recovered in the Himalayas. The clip shows four Britons, two Americans, an Australian and an Indian slowly making their way up an unnamed peak in sunny weather.The group was attempting to climb India’s second-highest peak Nanda Devi when contact was lost on 26 May.Seven bodies were recovered but Briton Martin Moran remains missing.The 1 minute 55 second clip released by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) on Monday shows the eight climbers roped together as they take steps up an unnamed peak.
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The group pictured before they began their ascent in May
The camera with the footage was found buried in snow near the area where the bodies were eventually recovered in June, media reports said.According to ITBP spokesman Vivek Kumar Pandey, the group’s weight could have caused a snow ledge they were on to give away, “triggering an avalanche”. The clip is now being used to help “analyse what went wrong with their mission”.
“The GoPro was proved to be like the black box of an aircraft giving an insight into the last few moments of the climbers, ITBP deputy inspector general APS Nambadia said at a press briefing. “It was mesmerising for us to see the footage.”The group began their ascent on 13 May, led by experienced British mountain guide Martin Moran whose Scotland-based company, Moran Mountain, has run numerous expeditions in the Indian Himalayas.He led a group consisting of: John McLaren, Rupert Whewell and University of York lecturer Richard Payne from the UK; US nationals Anthony Sudekum and Ronald Beimel; Australian Ruth McCance; and Indian guide Chetan Pandey.