Hugging saved our lives: British and American climbers describe an astonishing fight for survival as they were trapped 20,000 feet on an Indian mountain on a small ridge while a helicopter flew overhead… but didn’t see them

Two climbers who went missing for several days while scaling a Himalayan mountain have revealed that cuddling together to retain their body heat was the key to saving them from their terrifying ordeal.

Fay Manners, 37, and American climber Michelle Dvorak, 31, had been missing since Thursday when they got into trouble while climbing India‘s Chaukhamba Mountain.

The pair sent a panicked message back to base camp to say they were in trouble because they had lost their climbing gear, tent and food in a gorge.

Although they were stranded at an altitude of 6,015 meters (19,700 feet) while trying to reach the peak of the mountain in Uttarakhand, they have since been rescued in a daring helicopter mission and are now safe.

Manners, an experienced climber, told the Times from the Indian Mountaineering Foundation office in Delhi: “Only our body heat saved us. Cuddling saved us.”

She and Dvorak had lost their suitcases during the climb after a rockfall, causing them to panic.

American Michelle Dvorak, 31, (pictured) was also missing alongside Ms Manners

“With your equipment, you can still consider a few options. Without your equipment you feel helpless. There’s nothing you can do to get to safety. There was no way we could attempt a descent.” Ways said.

Manners, who was the first woman to complete the ascent of the Phantom Direct route on the south face of the Grandes Jorasses, the longest ice route in the Mont Blanc massif, was left with only light clothing after the rock fall.

While she and Dvorak were able to warm themselves in the morning sun, they were freezing by the time night fell.

‘I was just shaking all the time. Oh, I was so cold,” she said.

The cold and the seemingly increasing likelihood that they would not be rescued weighed heavily on them for days, but they were determined to be rescued.

Fellow climbers at the mountain’s base camp knew they were alive.

Colonel Madan Gurung, director of the Indian Mountaineering Foundation, said, “On Thursday night, all the lights went off at the base camp and everyone looked towards the mountains and we saw a light flickering in the dark.

“We knew they were doing well, we just had to be quick.”

The pair were rescued by a joint operation by the Indian Air Force, the State Disaster Response Force and the State Disaster Management Authority.

The mountaineers have now been found safe after being stranded during their climb to the summit in Uttarakhand

Mrs Manners (photo) has been found safe and sound

At one point they saw and heard a rescue helicopter fly over them, before becoming discouraged when the pilot took off because the pilot couldn’t see where they were.

“It was so hard… seeing the helicopter gave us hope, but when they flew away the sound disappeared,” Manners said.

Finally, they were evacuated through search efforts by the Indian Air Force, the State Disaster Response Force and the State Disaster Management Authority.

Kapil Malhotra, their tour operator, said they were so exhausted that they looked drunk when he saw them coming out of the helicopter.

Ms Manners said in a video after their rescue: ‘We were pulling my bag up, and she had her bag with her, and the rockfall came and cut the rope with the other bag, and it just went all the way down the mountain. ‘

Ms Manners said she just wants to eat “spicy Indian food” and rest before going home.

Incredibly, she has not ruled out attempting the Chaukhamba climb again – ‘but not just yet’.

Michelle Theresa Dvorak and Fay Manners, both experienced climbers, sent a message via pager to their liaison officer saying their bag containing food and essential equipment had fallen into a crevasse.

British mountaineer Mrs. Manners seen on the mountain in a sleeping bag

The Brit from Bedford moved to the Alps to pursue her passion for climbing and became a professional alpinist, sponsored by brands including The North Face and Petzl.

She has become the first person to complete a number of complex routes through several alpine mountains.

“My ambition is to inspire women to pursue their interest in mountaineering,” according to her website.

Ms Manners is a data consultant ‘by night’, as can be seen from her Instagram – which has more than 15,000 followers.

Her companion, Michelle, is also an accomplished climber and teaching assistant at the University of Washington.