Search turns a corner as hope for two climbers wanes

The Oregonian ^ | 12/20/06 | MATTHEW PREUSCH and STUART TOMLINSON

[randita]

Rescuers from the U.S. Air Force Reserve's 304th Rescue Squadron who found James in his snow cave said he had a thin lightweight waterproof sack, but no sleeping bag and no warm insulated jacket.

Can't survive if you can't keep warm. Wonder if he lost his pack in the accident which contained coat, sleeping bag, etc. But he did have a light waterproof sack, which would have supposedly been in his pack. More information would be helpful. Good down jackets and sleeping bags or half bags rated to 20º can be had for barely more than a pound each. Essential gear, IMO.

[OldFriend]

Perhaps there will be lessons learned from this tragedy so the loss of these three friends will not have been for naught.

Very sad for their loved ones.

[Moonman62]

Snow caves aren't much good without insulation from the ice. James probably died not too many hours after he made the cell call.

[Condor51]

"This office is not going to give up unless somebody tells me the risk of this thing outweighs the results," Wampler said.

Okay I'M telling you. So stop spending WASTING the taxpayers money - NOW.

1. These egomaniac thrill seekers, should by law, post a Bond prior to any climb as to cover any rescue - recovery monies spent.
2. They should be required to get a PERMIT when issued by the local LEO, who will be responsible for their 'rescue'.
3. They should be required BY LAW carry a transponder or beacon so 'we' can find their broken, frozen butts when their grand plans go awry.

If I plan a large 'protest march' or such, I need a Permit and a Bond to cover any unseen costs, Mountain Climbing or any 'Extreme Sport' should be no exception.

I have zero sympathy for these adrenalin rush seeking jerks. 'Because It's There' doesn't work any more.

[Rummyfan]

These climbers went up Mt Hood in December. If they were unprepared that's too bad for them. How much has been spent, and how many lives have been risked to try and rescue them? Enough already. They were big boys and knew what they were getting into.

[Clara Lou]

Well said, IMO.

[Kimmers]

I also get real upset when resucers loose their own lives trying to save the people that knowingly take risks like this.

I do agree with your suggestions, maybe that already happens, I do not know.

[Condor51]

Thank you.

[Condor51]

***They were big boys and knew what they were getting into.***

You bet.

And what they choose to do is almost like an adult version of 'Jackass'.

"Hey Maude, watch this - we're gonna climb Mt Hood in December when there could be 10ft of snow in one day. Keep the camera running."

[Condor51]

****I do agree with your suggestions, maybe that already happens, I do not know.****

From all of what I've heard in this non-stop coverage is NO. They go on their merry way and taxpayers foot the bill for their screw ups.

That 'may' have been okay in 1940 when a rescue was impossible due to lack of technology (like no Helicopters), but not in today's world.

What they did was irresponsible.

[Melas]

I have a better idea. FReepers should be honor bound to not advocate NANNY STATE GOVERNMENT! By all means let's advocate that government start demanding that allegedly free people have to post bonds before doing whatever it is this week that the government feels like regulating. Too stupid for words. You and your ilk trust government way too much.

[BubbaHeel]

Rescuers from the U.S. Air Force Reserve's 304th Rescue Squadron who found James in his snow cave said he had a thin lightweight waterproof sack, but no sleeping bag and no warm insulated jacket.

Not to speak ill of the dead, but the first word that came to mind upon reading that sentence was: IDIOTS!

I wonder if they bothered to check weather.com before they departed?

http://www.weather.com/weather/tenday/97049
http://www.weather.com/weather/hourbyhour/97049
http://www.weather.com/weather/map/97049?name=index_large_animated&day=1

97049 = Zigzag, OR = Rhododendron, OR = Villages at Mt. Hood:
http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Volcanoes/Hood/Maps/map_hood_area.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villages_at_Mt._Hood%2C_Oregon

[Hot Tabasco]

There was a segment on TDC last night on Everest and the problems this one group was having. What bothered me the most was when they had passed by another person who had dropped by the wayside and he was dying but they just left him there. On the way back they checked on him and he had finally died............I just could not understand or comprehend the mindset of those people that just walked by. Common decensey would have had those people stop their mission and try to get the guy back down.

They even showed pictures of other people who had died and their bodies remained on site..........

[Alberta's Child]

In defense of those climbers on Mount Everest . . .

A climb on Mount Everest is a whole different scenario. To get a sense of how large it is, just imagine climbing to the top of Mount Hood, and then from that point climbing to the top of another Mount Hood again . . . which then leaves you about 6,000 feet below the top of the mountain.

The problem with a real high mountain climb is not so much the weather conditions -- it's the lack of oxygen. These climbers are often left on the side of the trail by other passing climbers because in thin air at that elevation, any excessive exertion on the part of a climber puts his/her own life in jeopardy. Oxygen tanks are needed at these high altitudes, and helping an injured climber on the trail is basically the equivalent of going on a deep-sea dive with 60 minutes of oxygen in your tank, finding an injured diver 30 minutes into your descent, and giving him half your oxygen just so both of you can get halfway back to the surface only to die with 15 minutes left in your ascent.

[freeplancer]

Nicely said. Also, is it just coincidence that they are from TEXAS and NEW YORK? If they had families, I think they were selfish.

[MikeyGo]

IIRC Oregon and Montana have laws that allow rescuees to be billed for rescue efforts if said rescuees do something really, really dumb (like in this case).

I suppose they could bill the estates of these new Darwin Award recipients, but I think it would be bad form.

[Paradox]

Good down jackets and sleeping bags or half bags rated to 20º can be had for barely more than a pound each. Essential gear, IMO.

Right, people put way too much belief in those thin mylar blankets. They do a certain job (reflecting radiative heat back to the body), but they aren't "insulating" per se.

[theFIRMbss]

>I have zero sympathy for these adrenalin rush seeking jerks

Don't judge all climbers
by dead-heads who wind up dead.
Climbers I have known

were amazingly
careful about every point
of preparation

and execution
of a climb. This is sort of
like gun control laws --

we can't let ourselves
punish the decent people
because of the nuts.

[M. Dodge Thomas]

"'The only thing I would say in regards to climbing the mountain this time of year (is) if you have a problem, it's really hard to get rescued,"... "The photos, Wampler said, also confirmed fears that the men were traveling light and fast, lessening their chances of surviving for long in the harsh conditions that quickly overtook the mountain.. Rescuers from the U.S. Air Force Reserve's 304th Rescue Squadron who found James in his snow cave said he had a thin lightweight waterproof sack, but no sleeping bag and no warm insulated jacket."

Was reading Jack London’s To Build A Fire in grade school a turning point for anyone else’s view of man's place in nature?

[Lizavetta]

Didn't one of them have a wife and four kids?