Perhaps someone else saw more of this interview and can fill in more details or make corrections to my version.
Nine Climbers Fall Into Crevasse on Mount Hood, Three Killed; Rescue Helicopter Crashes
TIMBERLINE LODGE, Ore. (AP) - Nine climbers fell into a crevasse Thursday near the summit of Mount Hood in an accident that killed three and critically injured two others. Rescue efforts took a dramatic turn when a helicopter trying to reach the survivors crashed nearby, tumbling down the snowy mountainside.The four crew members escaped the battered helicopter, but at least two were seriously injured, said Chris Bernard, an Air Force Reserve rescue specialist.
Two critically injured climbers were transported to a hospital by early afternoon. Two of the climbers who fell had minor injuries, and other rescue helicopters were trying to take them off the mountain.
The Pave Hawk had just dropped off a rescuer and equipment above the crevasse when it started to lose altitude and fall away from the ridge. Its refueling probe jutted into the snow, and the helicopter careened sideways down the mountain. Its rotor blades sheared off, and the helicopter rolled about 1,000 feet before coming to a rest at the base of Crater Rock.
Two groups of climbers were about 800 feet from the 11,240-foot summit when they fell into the crevasse about 9 a.m. A paramedic with the group used his cell phone to call for help.
Rescuers set out on foot, in helicopters and in snow vehicles to reach the injured climbers. Three of the climbers died when they fell, said Angela Blanchard, spokeswoman for the Clackamas County Sheriff's Department.
The weather was sunny and winds were calm, easing the task of helicopter crews, but officials said any high-altitude operation is risky.
Pave Hawk helicopters can operate at altitudes up to 14,200 feet. The Pave Hawk is a modified version of the Army's Black Hawk helicopter used for search-and-rescue missions.
The helicopter was assigned to the Air Force Reserve's 304th Rescue Squadron based at Portland International Airport, the Pentagon said.
It was not immediately known whether the climbers were ascending the peak or coming down when the accident happened.
Keith Mischke, executive director of a climbing club, said the crevasse is about 25 to 30 feet deep. Climbers normally go around it or cross one of the snow bridges that naturally form across the gap, he said.
"They go across the bridges one at a time usually - a snow bridge can be between 2 feet or 15 feet wide," he said. But he added: "If somebody falls they could pull the others in."
Mount Hood is Oregon's highest mountain and is the fourth highest in the Cascade Mountains range. It is an inactive volcano and has 22 glaciers.
The accident came a day after at least two climbers who became trapped in a storm died on Mount Rainier, about 100 miles to the north of Mount Hood in Washington state.
Mount Hood is the site of one of the worst climbing disasters in the United States. In May 1986, nine teen-agers and two teachers from the Oregon Episcopal School in Portland froze to death while retreating from a storm during an annual climb by students and staff.
Eleven people died on Mount Rainier in 1981 when they were caught in a massive icefall.
In the past 100 years, experts say there have been 130 deaths on Mount Hood. In the last 10 years in the United States, there have been an average of 30 climbing fatalities per year, said Jed Williamson, who edits the Accidents in North American Mountaineering publication for the American Alpine Club.
AP-ES-05-30-02 1924EDT
That could be correct. I did not have details, but heard right after it happened that city firefighters were involved in some way. God bless our firefighters.
I dove into the gravel when I realized the swingload operation had gone seriously wrong. I later thanked the pilot on command at the time of tail roter spin-off for not killing me.
He told me I had been lucky, he had had no control. That was frightening. The main roter had ground up eight feet from my legs.
I offer my deepest compassion and wishes for those rescuers whowere injured, and wish a speedy recovery.
The vedeo is horrible deja vu. I have memories of smells, sounds and expectations of emminent death that make me sweat when I watched that on the news.
I am really glad the fuel is in crashworthy fuel blatters with breakaway fittings. If that system was simular to that on most cars, that crew would have been roasted. Scary thought. an SPH fight helment and nomex clothing and gloves can only do so much in a flash fire.