A harrowing survival story is unfolding on the icy slopes of Jengish Chokusu, also known as Victory Peak, located on the border between Kyrgyzstan and China. Russian mountaineer Natalia Nagovitsina, known as Natasha, has been stranded at an altitude of 7,010 metres since 12 August, after a severe fall left her with a broken leg during her descent.
Despite her experience and preparation, Natalia has been immobilised in one of the most remote and inhospitable regions on Earth. Rescue efforts have been severely hampered by extreme altitude, freezing temperatures, and violent weather. Tragically, Italian climber Luca Sinigaglia lost his life during an earlier attempt to reach her.
On 23 August, Kyrgyz authorities officially suspended all rescue operations due to relentless snowstorms and unsafe flying conditions. However, Natalia’s 27-year-old son, Mikhail Nagovitsin, refuses to give up hope. He insists his mother is alive, citing drone footage taken a week after her last known contact that shows her waving — a clear sign, he argues, of her conscious state and will to survive.
Mikhail has launched a public appeal, urging officials to conduct at least one more drone reconnaissance flight. Frustrated by the halted efforts, he is now calling on Russian President Vladimir Putin to intervene and support a renewed aerial search.
While the Kyrgyz Mountaineering Federation defends the decision to suspend the mission, citing the impossibility of safe flights even by experienced Italian pilots, Mikhail remains unconvinced. He points to a forecasted weather window on 25 August that was not utilised, raising questions about the urgency and commitment of the rescue authorities.
Vice-president Ilim Karypbekov of the federation expressed deep pessimism, stating that survival under such extreme conditions for this length of time is virtually impossible. He suggested that any recovery effort may need to wait until the next climbing season, several months away.
As experts weigh the grim realities, Mikhail’s unwavering belief in his mother’s strength and resilience keeps the world watching. The story now teeters between the brutal facts of high-altitude survival and a son’s desperate hope that the human spirit can defy even the harshest odds.
