Injured Climber rescued off Mt Hood Saturday

[SandPounder]

POSTED: 8:41 am PST January 28, 2007

UPDATED: 8:51 am PST January 28, 2007

 

A climber with a broken leg and mild hypothermia was rescued off Mt. Hood on Saturday afternoon.

 

Clackamas County Sheriff’s Department said 69-year-old Terry Cone of Lake Oswego was climbing alone on the Palmer area of the mountain when he broke his leg around 3 p.m.

 

Cone was carrying and activated a mountain locator unit, or MLU, which immediately notified rescue crews of the situation and Cone’s location.

 

 

Cone was arrived at Timberline Lodge shortly after 8 p.m. and was given immediate medical treatment.

 

Clackamas County Communications staff praised Cone for being well-prepared and carrying the MLU.

 

It is estimated that only about half the climbers on Mount Hood carry the devices.

 

Authorities said carrying a cell phone with a back-up battery could be the difference between life and death in these types of situations.

Copyright 2007 by KPTV.com.

[Ducknut]

Glad to hear Terry is ok. I'll bet he takes that hike every weekend.

[iain]

An MLU does not initiate a rescue, as this article seems to suggest.

[StevenSeagal]

Well I'm glad he had an MLU unlike all the other idiots who don't carry them. Then again, if he hadn't been hiking on some stupid mountain, this would never have happened. What an idiot.

[Weekend_Climberz]

Cone was carrying and activated a mountain locator unit, or MLU, which immediately notified rescue crews of the situation and Cone's location.

 

I can understand it being able to locate him, but how would an MLU be able to communicate "the situation". Is there a "I have a broken leg" switch or something? Does this device have two-way communication? I don't think so

[iain]

The MLU was not used to find the subject on this rescue, though the climber was carrying one.

 

The MLU unit only broadcasts an analog ping on VHF, nothing more than that.

[ryland_moore]

The iinjured climber was located by another climber descending, who also happened to be a doctor carrying a cell phone. They called SR by cell. The MLU was activated, but am not sure if the signal was picked up prior to the doctor finding him.

[StevenSeagal]

All these idiots should be required to bring both an MLU and a doctor.

 

Damned if I want my tax money paying for this.

[fifthclass]

My climbing partner and I were the last off Hood that day and the second to arrive to this accident -- the first was another climber. Although Mr. Cone triggered his MLU, it had nothing to do with the rescue. The first to arrive called 911 on his cell - we provided additional elevation and location information with an altimeter. It was an obvious location about 1,000 feet above the Palmer, that could be spotted from Timberline. While rescue personnel may have tracked the MLU for additional location information, it made no practical difference. The news reports are very misleading.

Mr. Cone was a great guy. We did our best to keep him warm and comfortable, and he kept us entertained with stories of his multiple ascents of Hood (I can't remember the exact number but think it was 84), Rainier, Shuksan, Stuart, Baker, Adams, St. Helens, and countless other NW peaks. He is a Mazama who has been climbing (and leading climbs) since 1966 and is a great inspiration to all of us. The slopes above the Palmer were very icy and anyone could have gotten hurt the way that he did -- a fall with a caught crampon.

Regarding the rescue personnel (PMR), they were impressive and efficient. They arrived within a few hours of the call with a team of eight, started an IV, warmed him up, loaded him onto a sled, and got him safely down the mountain in no time at all. We can all hope to have a team like that to assist in the event of an accident.

[fifthclass]

Thanks Iain and Ryland. It's worth mentioning that Mr. Cone was unaware that an MLU does not initiate rescue. I would hope that those who sell/rent/promote use of these devices be clear regarding their limitations.

[spotly]

What does happen when an MLU is activated?

[Weekend_Climberz]

I'm glad Mr Cone is doing well :tup:

 

Kind of lame for the news to bring up the whole MLU issue again, almost incinuating something was done wrong on another notable Hood even.

[Alpinfox]

When an MLU is activated it starts transmitting a signal. The signal can then be triangulated and the position of the MLU discovered IF THE RESCUERS HAVE THEIR RECIEVERS ON. They don't keep the receivers on all the time; they only turn them on when they are told that a rescue is needed and that the victim has an MLU.

[MtnHigh]

to Drew, Jen and the doctor for their efforts in helping stablize the injuried climber.

[pink_chalk]

When an MLU is activated it starts transmitting a signal. The signal can then be triangulated and the position of the MLU discovered IF THE RESCUERS HAVE THEIR RECIEVERS ON. They don't keep the receivers on all the time; they only turn them on when they are told that a rescue is needed and that the victim has an MLU.

 

Good information.

[Bug]

Here's to a speed recovery.

[spotly]

Thanks Alpinfox.