Avalanche Kills 6 Japanese Climbers

Six Japanese climbers died and five were injured when an avalanche ripped through their base camp in northern Pakistan’s Karakoram mountain range, tour officials said. Three Pakistani guides also were injured when the avalanche hit the expedition’s base camp. Five other Japanese members escaped unhurt, a tour official said. The group, which had successfully scaled the 24,000-foot Mt. Skilbrum on Sunday, had been resting at the base camp at 17,400 feet. The climbers had been scheduled to return to Islamabad, the capital, on Wednesday.