Lance Naik Hanumanthappa Koppad, the lone survivor of the Siachen avalanche who had defied death for six days buried under snow, passed away at 11:45 am on Thursday, confirmed an Army official to news agency PTI. His condition had been deteriorating since early morning and a team of experts from the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) had joined in the efforts save his life.

In his health bulletin as of 8 am on Thursday, the army had said: “Braveheart Lance Laik Hanamanthappa continues to remain extremely critical with worsening multiple organ dysfunction. His circulation shock is now refractory to all drugs in maximum permissible doses and his kidneys remain non-functional.”



There also was evidence of pneumonia in both lungs. “His pneumonia has worsened and the blood clotting disorder shows no sign of reversal despite blood component support,” the health bulletin added.

Hanumanthappa was evacuated by a helicopter on Tuesday from the site of the avalanche that hit his post on Siachen Glacier before being shifted to Delhi in an Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft accompanied by a critical care specialist of the force and a medical specialist from the base camp.

Hanumanthappa was being treated by a team of intensivists, neurologist, nephrologist, endocrinologist and surgeons. He had been administered fluids and drugs to bring up his blood pressure, besides antibiotics.