GOVERNMENT CAMP, Ore. (AP) - Three climbers who fell from a ledge on snowy Mount Hood got into their sleeping bags and huddled with a dog for warmth early Monday as rescuers zeroed in on their position despite blowing snow and ferocious winds.
Russell Gubele, who was coordinating communications for the rescue operation, said a rescue team had reached the general area where the three climbers had found shelter behind rocks.
"They're not far away from the climbers," he said.
But rescue teams decided to camp out and resume their push at daylight because they can't seen anything and "it's extremely treacherous up where they are. One false step could be not good."
Battling winds up to 70 mph and blowing snow, rescue teams had worked through the night trying to locate the climbers.
Rescuers hadn't made visual contact with the three climbers - two women and a man - but were in cell phone communication with them. Gubele said rescuers last had cell phone contact with the trio at 3:28 a.m. Monday.
The three had gotten into their sleeping bags to stay warm, sheltering behind some rocks as rescuers worked through the night, Gubele said.
"They also have a Labrador dog with them that is cuddled up with them to help them keep warm," Gubele told AP Broadcast News. "My understanding is that they are experienced rock climbers, but not necessarily experienced in mountain climbing."
"They are conscious; we are talking to them," Gubele said.
Still, officials were worried.
"There's always danger of exposure on Mount Hood," Gubele said.
At least one of the three had a mountain locator unit, which emits signals used to find missing or stranded climbers. Rescuers were using the signals to try to locate the trio's precise position.
"They're wet, shivering and cold," said Jim Strovink, a spokesman for the Clackamas County Sheriff's office. "Hopefully we'll be able to home right in on their exact location."
Sgt. Sean Collinson, a spokesman for the Clackamas County Sheriff's office, said the two women appeared to have suffered some bumps and bruises and their male companion is in good condition. He said all three "were in fairly good spirits when we talked to them on the phone."
The drama began shortly before noon, when someone in an eight-person climbing party called emergency dispatchers to say three of the climbers had fallen off a cliff.
The climbing mishap occurred at about the 8,300-foot level on the mountain, which is about 60 miles east of Portland.
Battling snow and winds that exceeded 70 mph, a team of rescue mountaineers scrambled up the mountain to search. The other members of the party were told to dig a snow cave and wait for help.
Authorities said the climbers' electronic locator device helped rescuers find them. One of the devices was activated after the fall, authorities said.
The three climbers who fell were found near the five others, authorities said. The five were taken down to Timberline Lodge, a ski resort at the 6,000-foot level of Mount Hood, and all are reported in good condition, the sheriff's office said in an e-mail.
One of the five is Trevor Liston of Portland.
In a brief press conference at the lodge, Liston said he was optimistic for the chances of his three companions still on the mountain: "So far, they're doing pretty good up there from what we've heard."
Liston, who did not give his age, said he saw the three fall but didn't say how it happened. The names of the other climbers have not been released.
The mountain can be treacherous, particularly in the winter.
In December, search teams scoured Mount Hood for days in the hopes of finding a group of missing climbers alive. The bodies of Brian Hall, of Dallas, and Jerry "Nikko" Cooke, of New York, have not been found. Another climber in their group, Kelly James, of Dallas, died of hypothermia.
In the past 25 years, more than 35 climbers have died on the 11,239-foot mountain, one of the most frequently climbed mountains in the world.
This is massive-go-find-the-dumbasses search and rescue mission number 4 or 5 so far this winter.
And if'n I'm not mistaken, when they first had trouble, it was possibly above freezing at the time, and raining...getting wet and stranded before the freezing level drops back down and buries you in feet of snow(probably snowed between a foot and two feet since they got stuck)...sounds like a party. I'll bet that dog is PISSED.
What the fuck is wrong with people? Darwin lives. If you decide to climb a mountain that's well-known for absolutely brutal winter conditions, and has been weeding out the stupid people at a furious clip lately, there's a chance you might die.
A couple of climbers, a couple of skiers, a couple of nasty traffic accidents(Hwy 26, coming down off the mountain, is one of the drunk driving capitals of the world)...Mt Hood is having a field-day this winter.
