Two Japanese climbers who went missing while attempting to scale Gangapurna in Manang district have been found dead, officials said.

The climbers have been identified as Hidesuke Taneishi, 40, and Tetsu Hashimoto, 25. They went missing while climbing the 7,455-metre mountain in Ngisyang Rural Municipality-6.

Mukti Prasad Khanal, chief district officer of Manang, said that the bodies of the climbers were found on Thursday at an altitude of around 6,300 metres on the mountain’s southern side. A search operation using a helicopter operated by Altitude Air located the bodies.

The two climbers had arrived in Manang through Cosmo Adventure Pvt Ltd, accompanied by a Nepali guide. They began their ascent on October 10 and were last in contact on the night of October 15, when they reached an altitude of around 7,050 metres.

After losing contact with the climbers, their Nepali guide, Tumbahang Rai, informed the expedition company, which launched a search operation. A helicopter search on October 19 found their bags and trekking poles at the site, but the climbers remained missing.

Their bodies were finally located at around 11 am on October 23, said Krishna Prasad Poudel, assistant chief district officer of Manang.

“The bodies were flown to Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu for post-mortem examinations,” Poudel said. Arrangements are being made to hand them over to their families in coordination with the Japanese Embassy in Nepal.