Mt. Hood climber falls to death, others rescued

More than a half-dozen people had been climbing near the mountain’s peak Tuesday when Sumi fell about 1,000 feet, said Sgt. Brian Jensen, a Clackamas County sheriff’s office spokesman.

Other climbers not in Sumi’s party reached him and found him bleeding from the ears with fading vital signs. They performed CPR for 90 minutes before a helicopter could airlift Sumi.

KOIN-TV reported that video taken from a helicopter showed other climbers performing CPR on the man before he was airlifted by an Oregon Army National Guard helicopter to a hospital. He was later declared dead.

Mount Hood, a peak notorious for loose ice and rocks in warm weather, is a popular climbing site that has seen dozens of accidents and fatalities over the years. Thousands climb it each year, mostly in the spring.

The sun has been out this week and the temperature was around freezing at the spot where the climber fell, said Russell Gubele of Mountain Wave Search and Rescue.

“This is the kind of weather conditions and the time of year where you often get falling ice, falling rocks and problems,” Gubele said. “It sounds like the conditions up there are very unsafe right now.”

Hood River Crag Rats, a local mountain rescue group, was among the agencies that assisted in the rescue operation, according to Hood River County Sheriff Matt English.

Climbers used their cellphones to report that conditions were hazardous and described the falling rocks and ice “like a bowling alley,” said Air Force Maj. Chris Bernard of the 304th Rescue Squadron.

The stuck climbers were on or near the Hogsback area near the summit of the 11,240-foot (3,429-meter) mountain east of Portland, on the south side of the mountain.

Rescuers made it up to the other climbers Tuesday afternoon at 10,500-foot (3,200-meter) elevation and assessed their health before starting down the mountain.