SEARCH OPERATION FOR KIM ENDS

[Anchor Lead]

Next is a follow-up report about disabled South Korean mountaineer Kim Hong-bin who went missing after he made history by climbing all 14 peaks of the Himalayas. Despite local authorities' efforts to try to find the missing mountaineer, he couldn't be found. The search operation has now ended as per his family's request.

[Pkg]

Kim Hong-bin lost all of his ten fingers in an accident at age 27 while scaling Mount McKinley in Alaska, the highest peak in North America. He underwent seven surgeries in two months, but he never gave up hope. Kim fought on to become the world’s first disabled mountaineer to scale all 13 peaks in the Himalayas and all the highest peaks in the world's seven continents. On July 18, Kim conquered the 8,000-plus-meter Broad Peak, the last of the 14 Himalayan mountains, setting a new record. He went missing the next morning while descending the mountain and sent a distress call to Korea. But contact with him was later lost. The Gwangju City Government and the city’s alpine federation launched a search and rescue operation with the cooperation of the Pakistani government. They even mobilized helicopters for an air search but failed to find the missing mountaineer. A week has passed since Kim went missing. They decided to wrap up the search and hold a funeral for him. The decision was made upon the wish of Kim’s family. The mountaineer reportedly had previously asked his family to not conduct a search for him should it place others in danger.

[Soundbite] Pi Kil-yeon(Gwangju Alpine Federation) : "He previously said that he had climbed mountains with the help of other people and didn't want to cause trouble to them after he died."

Kim gave a message of hope and passion by defying impossibilities and continuing to achieve tremendous challenges. Before leaving for Broad Peak, the mountaineer left a message that has eventually become his last one.

[Soundbite] Kim Hong-bin(Mountainee(Jun. 4)) : "If I succeed, other disabled people can try for it. As a person who got disabled before them, I will tenaciously blaze the trail and give hope to them."