Climbers survive fall on Mt. Washington

Last updated 7/4/2000 at Noon

Two climbers survived two nights of freezing temperatures and biting winds on the shoulders of Mt. Washington after a bone-breaking 90-foot fall on Thursday, June 29.

Eric Seyler, 27, of Gresham and Curt Smith, 27, of Portland fell at the 7,000 foot level of the mountain on a technical climb. Sgt. Wayne Inman of Deschutes County Sheriff's Search and Rescue said the cause of the accident has yet to be determined.

"The impact of the bodies made a divot of about three feet into the snow," Inman reported.

The men suffered arm, leg and pelvic fractures in the fall and "they were really unable to crawl or move to a location where they could signal for help," Inman reported.

The climbers did not have a cell phone.

However, Inman said, they had a strong will to survive. The climbers cut up their packs and used them to insulate their clothing and they huddled together in the bitter high country cold over two nights. They later reported that they did not see the sun until about 1 p.m. from where they lay.

"I can't imagine the suffering these two individuals went through over two days," Inman said. "They had a survivor's mentality and if they had not had that will to live, they might not have survived it."

The climbers also had some good luck. A group of hikers out of Big Lake Youth Camp happened across them on Saturday morning and hastened back to camp to summon help.

At nearly the same time, four members of the Eugene Mountain Rescue unit, training in the area, also came upon the scene. They had a cell phone and called for help.

The accident scene was on the western slope of Mt. Washington, in Linn County. Linn County's search and rescue unit was scrambled and so were the Camp Sherman Hasty Team and Deschutes County search and rescue.

The three units were prepared to cooperate on a joint rescue mission, Inman noted.

"These three counties meet semi-annually to talk about just this kind of event," Inman said.

Inman called in his Deschutes County troops, who were headed through Sisters to make a training climb on North Sister. The rescuers staged at Hoodoo Ski Area.

The Eugene rescuers determined that the only safe way to get the injured climbers off the steep slopes was to call in the US Air Force 304th Air Rescue Unit out of Portland. The unit sent out a Blackhawk helicopter with a pair of parachute paramedics.

In the meantime, rescuers received word of a second accident. According to Inman, an "unsanctioned" rescue party had gone out from Big Lake Youth Camp and a 22-year-old camp counselor had fallen. His location and the extent of his injuries were unknown.

Inman split the Deschutes County team, sending four rescuers to search for the injured counselor while the rest of the team hiked up to the injured climbers.

At the accident scene, rescuers determined that there was no suitable landing zone for a helicopter. The Blackhawk swooped in to a safe zone downslope and the paramedics rappelled down and hiked up to the climbers while the chopper returned to Hoodoo to await the call to come back.

"We had to package these patients, the most severely injured first, and evacuate down a steep scree slope," Inman said.

Rescuers used a rope system to lower the climbers over unstable terrain of rocks and snow banks. Once in position, at about 3 p.m. the Blackhawk came in and winched the most seriously injured climber and the two paramedics into the aircraft and ran for St. Charles Medical Center in Bend.

The Blackhawk returned at about 5 p.m. and rescued the second climber.

In the meantime, searchers found the injured camp counselor and determined that he could be assisted off the slopes and down to a trail.

"He's a little banged up and cut up but otherwise all right," Inman reported.

Inman said the incident was an example of coordination and cooperation between a range of agencies and organizations. Corvallis Mountain Rescue turned out to lend a hand, as did scouts from the Linn County search and rescue program.

Hoodoo provided an excellent staging area, according to Inman. Rescuers used ski patrol facilities, "which is pretty luxurious for us, since we're used to operating off the hood of a vehicle," Inman said.

Inman said the rescuers encountered numerous hikers and climbers who were under-equipped to take on Mt. Washington in the rugged high country above Sisters. Many did not have appropriate clothing and foot gear.

Seeing a lackadaisical approach to the wilderness was frustrating to Inman, who had visions of more trouble ahead.

"We were kind of busy and didn't need another rescue," he said.

Inman advises that even those who venture into the high country to get away from it all carry one new item of survival gear -- a cell phone.

"All climbing parties, all hiking parties, should really consider carrying a cell phone," he said.

Seyler and Smith could have called 911 from their position with a cell phone, Inman said, sparing themselves two hellish nights, fighting for their lives

Author Bio

Jim Cornelius, Editor in Chief

Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.