Happy Valley man seriously injured after falling near Mount Hood summit

MOUNT HOOD VILLAGE, Ore. (KGW) — A Happy Valley man was seriously injured after falling close to 700 feet near the summit of Mount Hood, the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) said in a news release.

Around 6:30 a.m. Saturday, first responders learned that the 43-year-old climber fell from the summit ridge near the Old Chute area on Mount Hood. Witnesses said he lost his ice axe and fell to the rocks above the Hot Rocks fumarole.

The sheriff’s office deployed a search-and-rescue team to find the injured climber and bring him to safety. A volunteer search team from mountaineering groups Portland Mountain Rescue and Hood River Crag Rats also joined the rescue mission, and authorities set up a command center at Timberline Lodge.

Rescue crews reached the injured climber just before 10:30 a.m. and administered first aid. An Oregon Army National Guard helicopter arrived on scene around 1 p.m. to hoist the climber to safety.

He was flown to a Portland-area hospital to be treated for his injuries.

The sheriff’s office warned that Mount Hood is dangerous to climb year-round because of steep, icy conditions. It added that this was the second accident withinin the same area in just over a week.

On June 24, a 31-year-old Portland woman was climbing Mount Hood when she fell several hundred from the summit ridge down the Old Chute. She was critically injured and transported to a hospital by helicopter.

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