Twenty-one runners participating in a mountain ultramarathon in China died Saturday after hail, freezing rain and gale-force winds hit the high-altitude course.
After an all-night rescue operation in freezing temperatures, rescuers confirmed that 151 out of 172 participants were found safely.
The 62-mile course followed an extremely narrow mountain path with altitudes reaching between 6,500 to nearly 10,000 feet. The race was held Saturday in the Yellow River Stone Forest tourist site in Gansu province.
The storm caught runners off guard as race organizers had expected mild weather.
One runner who quit the race said many of the participants were not dressed for cold conditions.
In an account posted on WeChat, he described how his fingers grew numb while passing through the most difficult section between miles 15 and 22, where the course climbed 1,000 meters. He said he felt dazed and decided to turn back and was able to make it to safety.
But other runners further along in the course were not so lucky.
The participants were all experienced endurance runners; one of the runners who died was Liang Jing, a well-known athlete who had previously won another 62-mile ultramarathon.
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A race organizer told the Beijing News that there were no forecasts of extreme weather, but the city's local branch of the National Early Warning Information Center had been warning for three days of hail and strong winds.
While the race had been held along the same course several times before, some wondered if organizers were adequately prepared for emergencies.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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