A TEENAGER who survived a treacherous climb to conquer a 20,000ft Himalayan mountain narrowly escaped death on the bus home.

Ben Swindlehurst, 18, from Preston, scaled the peak to virgin territory with a team of climbers.

He caught a bus to Delhi, India from where he planned to catch a plane home when was caught in a massive, killer landslide.

Ben of Lightfoot Lane, Fulwood, had been with the Zansker expedition which conquered the soaring Himalayan mountain they named Sahas, the Hindu word for determination.

But on their way home, disaster struck. Ben told the Citizen: "The ground was sliding down the hill in front of us. It had been torn away by falling rocks."

They abandoned the bus and set off on foot. He said: "We were suddenly faced by a burst dam, with the river flowing towards us. We had to race for our lives up the hill to escape."

At least one person died in the disaster and hundreds had to be airlifted to safety.

Ben and the team were transported to safety in army lorries. He arrived back in Britain on Monday this week. His mother, Jane, said: "I was a nervous wreck. I heard about the dam and people being swept away. I didn't know where Ben was."

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