At least eight people have died while climbing Eurasia's highest active volcano in eastern Russia's Kamchatka region, local media has reported.
Rescue efforts are under way in a bid to reach another six climbers currently stranded - sheltering at camp due to the bad weather.
The climbers were attempting the climb the Klyuchevskaya Sopka volcano when the accident occurred about 500-metres below the 4,750-metre summit, reports from the prosecutor's office of the Kamchatka region said.
Four died instantly when they fell while at an altitude of 13,000ft, with another four dying shortly afterwards.
All the climbers are Russian nationals.
Two of the climbers are believed to be still sheltering in a camp at 3,300m and another four are in a tent at 4,000m.
The group began their ascent on Tuesday - with one of the guides on the tour thought to have broken his leg.
The condition of the other remaining climbers remains unknown.
The volcano is Russia's most dangerous and in March 2020 it spewed ash clouds 20,000ft into the air.
It has had over 100 eruptions in the past 300 years and is Siberia's highest mountain, located some 4,225 miles east of Moscow.
“According to preliminary data, five people have died after falling from a great height,” the investigative committee said.
The emergency ministry said that it has sent its rescuers to the Klyuchevskaya Sopka - but the altitude was too high for a helicopter to reach.
So once rescue teams reach a 3,300m they will have to walk to the site of the accident.
The tourists in the group arrived from across Russia, including the capital, Moscow.
Their climb was organised by a firm from the Siberian city of Novosibirsk.
The news comes as a British man who was attempting to climb up the Rucu Pichincha volcano near Quito on Sunday, August 14, fell to his death.
