Bogley

[jumar]

GOVERNMENT CAMP, Ore. - Rescuers who camped out on Mount Hood set out at daybreak Monday to try to reach three climbers who fell from a snowy ledge and were huddled in sleeping bags and cuddled with a dog amid ferocious wind and blowing snow.

"They are on the move," Russell Gubele, coordinating communications for the rescue operation, said of the rescuers.

Other rescue teams also were on the way to the site, which is believed to be around the 8,300-foot level on the 11,239-foot mountain. The rescuers, about 30 in all, were hoping to beat a snow storm expected later in the day.


The three climbers, two women and a man, fell on Sunday. They are believed to be good shape. Rescue officials were in frequent cell phone contact with them.

'Extremely treacherous'
Rescuers were moving into the White River Canyon, where the climbers took shelter behind rocks during the night. They were moving cautiously because of a "very severe avalanche danger," Gubele said.

Gubele said the rescue teams hoped to get to the climbers before noon. "We are all over the place up there trying to get to where they are," he said.

Teams had reached the general area earlier Monday, battling wind up to 70 mph, but decided to wait until daybreak because they couldn't see anything, Gubele said, and "it's extremely treacherous up where they are. One false step could be not good."

The three who fell were part of an eight-person party that set out on Saturday, camped on the mountain that night, and then began to come back down on Sunday when they ran into bad weather, officials said.

As they were descending, the three slipped off a ledge and fell about 100 feet. Someone in the party placed an emergency call to authorities.

The sheriff said the group was thought to be well equipped and have GPS capabilities, cell phones, mountain locator units and adequate climbing essentials.

The three had gotten into their sleeping bags to stay warm.

"They also have a Labrador dog with them that is cuddled up with them to help them keep warm," Gubele told AP Broadcast News. "My understanding is that they are experienced rock climbers, but not necessarily experienced in mountain climbing."


Still, officials were worried.

"There's always danger of exposure on Mount Hood," Gubele said.

"They're wet, shivering and cold," said Jim Strovink, a spokesman for the Clackamas County Sheriff's office.

Relatives of the climbers said the black Lab was named Velvet, Gubele said.

Sgt. Sean Collinson, a spokesman for the Clackamas County Sheriff's office, said the two women appeared to have suffered some bumps and bruises and their male companion is in good condition. He said all three "were in fairly good spirits when we talked to them on the phone."

Five climbers rescued
The five rescued climbers were taken down to Timberline Lodge, a ski resort at the 6,000-foot level of Mount Hood, and all are reported in good condition, the sheriff's office said in an e-mail.

At a news conference at the lodge, one of the rescued climbers, Trevor Liston, of Portland, said he was optimistic for companions still on the mountain: "So far, they're doing pretty good up there from what we've heard."

Liston said he saw the three fall but didn't say how it happened.

The mountain can be treacherous, particularly in the winter. In December, search teams scoured Mount Hood for days in the hopes of finding a group of missing climbers alive. The bodies of Brian Hall, of Dallas, and Jerry "Nikko" Cooke, of New York, have not been found. Another climber in their group, Kelly James, of Dallas, died of hypothermia.

In the past 25 years, more than 35 climbers have died on the 11,239-foot mountain, one of the most frequently climbed mountains in the world.

© 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

[Brian in SLC]

Looks like they'll be ok....

-Brian in SLC

GOVERNMENT CAMP, Ore. - Three climbers stranded on Mount Hood after a fall were rescued Monday after spending the night amid ferocious winds and blowing snow.

"Their condition is very good at this time," Russell Gubele, coordinating communications for the rescue operation, told CNN.

"They were located in the area where their mountain locator units suggested that they were, and we finally got some of our rescuers down there to them," he said. "They are fine. They are being warmed up right now and fed by our rescuers."

The three well-equipped climbers, two women and a man, fell off a ledge Sunday.

Gubele said the three were not badly injured and could walk out of the area themselves. "They're going to walk down," he said, adding that authorities hoped to pick them up with a rescue vehicle.

He said the three were found huddling with their dog Velvet. They had sleeping bags and mats, he said, and were under some rocks, huddled up trying to keep warm.

Gubele said the climbers' mountain locator unit helped rescuers find their position and they stayed in contact because the climbers had a cell phone.

"We knew where they were," he said. "The weather was really bad. It was a matter of getting the teams down there to them, which we were finally able to do in these severe weather conditions and extreme avalanche conditions."

Rescuers were hoping to get the three out before another storm, with 12 to 16 inches of snow, was due to arrive Monday.

Earlier Monday, rescuers moved into the White River Canyon, where the climbers took shelter behind rocks during the night. Some of the rescuers spent the night on the mountain. They decided to wait to set out until daybreak because with winds up to 70 mph, they couldn't see anything, Gubele said, and "it's extremely treacherous up where they are. One false step could be not good."

The three who fell were part of an eight-person party that set out on Saturday, camped on the mountain that night, and then began to come back down on Sunday when they ran into bad weather, officials said.

As they were descending, the three slipped off a ledge and fell about 100 feet. Someone in the party placed an emergency call to authorities.

The three had gotten into their sleeping bags Sunday to stay warm and cuddled up with their black Lab, Gubele said.

"They also have a Labrador dog with them that is cuddled up with them to help them keep warm," Gubele told AP Broadcast News. "My understanding is that they are experienced rock climbers, but not necessarily experienced in mountain climbing."

Still, officials were worried.

"There's always danger of exposure on Mount Hood," Gubele said.

The five other members of the their climbing party were rescued Sunday and taken down to Timberline Lodge, a ski resort at the 6,000-foot level of Mount Hood, and all are reported in good condition, the sheriff's office said in an e-mail.

Liston said he saw the three fall but didn't say how it happened.

The mountain can be treacherous, particularly in the winter. In December, search teams scoured Mount Hood for days in the hopes of finding a group of missing climbers alive. The bodies of Brian Hall, of Dallas, and Jerry "Nikko" Cooke, of New York, have not been found. Another climber in their group, Kelly James, of Dallas, died of hypothermia.

In the past 25 years, more than 35 climbers have died on the 11,239-foot mountain, one of the most frequently climbed mountains in the world.

[Iceaxe]

Brian in SLC wrote: Looks like they'll be ok....

:2thumbs:

[tanya]

:hail2thechief: :nod: :2thumbs: :five: :clap: :banana: :roll_lol: :party: :lol-lol:


Whew! :phew:

[jumar]

Mount Hood Climbers Protest Bill That Would Require Them to Wear Electronic Locators
Wednesday, February 21, 2007


sponsored by
AP


SALEM, Ore. — Two days after electronic locator units helped rescuers locate three missing climbers on Mount Hood, veteran mountaineers pleaded with state lawmakers not to require them to carry the devices every time they head for the summit.

Some warned Tuesday that requiring locators would foster passivity among climbers who get into trouble and activate the beacons.

"They will wait for a rescue, and not do enough to rescue themselves," said Leslie Brown, a spokeswoman for Access Fund, a national mountaineering group.

Another said nothing can replace basic common sense when it comes to keeping people safe, and requiring electronic beacons would not be a "panacea."

"Pulling the cord (on a locator unit) doesn't turn the sky black with helicopters coming to pick you up," said Scott Russell, a veteran of numerous search-and-rescue operations. "Self-reliance and knowledge are what's going to keep you alive on the mountain."

Those arguments came as a House panel opened hearings on a bill to require that climbers who intend to go above 10,000 feet on Mount Hood from November through March carry locators that send signals to help searchers find them if they run into trouble.


Rescue Attempt Republican State Rep. John Lim said he introduced the bill mainly in response to last December's climbing accident in which three out-of-state men perished after they got caught in a blizzard near the summit of Mount Hood.

The legislation received a boost this week when three climbers trapped on the mountain overnight were rescued after they activated a mountain locator unit that led searchers directly to them.

"Certainly the timing was right," Lim told the House committee. "Instead of losing lives, they were able to save lives this time."

Hood River County Sheriff Joe Wampler, who led the December effort to find the three climbers, said requiring all climbers to have locators would cut down on the cost of rescue operations and reduce the risk to volunteer searchers by allowing them to pinpoint the location of missing climbers.

"My allegiance is with the search and rescue volunteers," he said. "As a sheriff, I'm responsible for these guys. Anything I can do to reduce the risk to them, I'm all for it."

In recent interviews, mountaineers who oppose Lim's bill had argued that while it's a good idea for climbers to carry electronic locators, requiring all climbers to do so would infringe on their freedom to pursue the sport without government interference.

In Tuesday's hearing, however, the climbers emphasized the argument that requiring the locators would give many climbers a false sense of security in what is an inherently dangerous sport.

"Mountaineering is all about judgment and making good choices," said Rocky Henderson, a team leader with Portland Mountain Rescue.

[gonzo]

jumar wrote: Mount Hood Climbers Protest Bill That Would Require Them to Wear Electronic Locators
Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Hmm...I'm not sure which side of that debate I agree with. Certainly the beacons will help the rescuers, but it will give inexperienced climbers a false sense of security. And, even worse, may actually encourage inexperienced climbers to try for a winter ascent.

Then again, people skiing in the backcountry without avy beacons are idiots. Why should mountaineering be any different?

[jumar]

I'm big on personal responsibility and would be worried about this becoming a slippery slope. What other requirements are they going to start imposing on people.

I guess it's just my personality. I'll happily do what I think is a good idea, if I get to choose it. But if someone forces the choice on me, I resist it. I didn't go to BYU because I didn't like all the restrictions students have there. But the funny thing is, i live almost everything they tell the students to do. I just want it to be my choice, not someone elses.