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Stranded snowshoers Rescued Near Willamette Pass

Another Snowshoer Rescued Near Willamette Pass
Same Area Where Three Stranded Snowshoers Rescued Earlier
By Barney Lerten, KTVZ.com
December 30, 2010

Nearly a dozen Deschutes County Sheriff's Search and Rescue members spent their New Year's Eve rescuing a stranded snowshoer near Willamette Pass, the second operation in that area in two days,

Deputies and SAR were dispatched around 11 p.m. Friday to a report of an injured snowshoer near the Maiden Peak Shelter, just east of the Willamette Pass ski area, said Deputy Rhett Hemphill.

Marc Rust, 39, of Eugene, had been snowshoeing in to the shelter from the ski area when the weather became too bad to continue, Hemphill said.

Rust turned around and tried to return to the ski area, but was unable to do so due to deep snow and cold, the deputy said.

Ten SAR members responded to the ski resort and headed out by snowmobile and snowshoes toward Rust's last known location.

Rust was located around 4:45 a.m. Saturday by a snowshoe team and treated for minor injuries related to exposure to the elements, Hemphill said. He was then taken back to his car, parked at the ski resort.

Three well Prepared snowshoers give GPS Coordinants by cell phone, assisted by SAR

Dozens of searchers battled heavy snowfall and high winds to find and rescue three snowshoers stranded in a severe snowstorm near Willamette Pass Wednesday night, a 12-hour operation that concluded
successfully Thursday morning, authorities said.

Klamath County 911 dispatch got a distress cell-phone call from three people who had been snowshoeing in the area of Maiden Peak Shelter, about three miles north-northeast of Willamette Pass ski area, said
sheriff’s Capt. Marc Mills.

The caller advised that they were stranded due to adverse weather and needed help, Mills said.

The three were identified as Annie Mason, 26, of Eugene; Joseph Walch, 32, of Central Point, and Roman Anderson, 30, of Eugene.

The area they called from could have been in Deschutes, Klamath or Lane counties, so a joint operation was put together, to meet at the ski area and begin the rescue operation around 7 p.m.

A total of 33 Search and Rescue personnel and sheriff’s deputies responded, working through the night and early morning to rescue the three.

SAR personnel “were severely hampered in efforts to reach the stranded party due to severe weather and snow conditions,” Mills said in a news release.

“At certain times, it was so bad that SAR personnel were only able to proceed forward 50 yards in an hour,” he added.

Shortly after 5 a.m., the three snowshoers were found, about 1 1/2 miles from the ski resort, just inside the Deschutes County line. Mills said it took another two hours to get them back to the ski area.

All three were checked by medics on scene and were found to be in good shape. They were treated for mild exposure, warmed, fed and given a ride home.

Mills noted that the snowshoers “were prepared to spend 24 hours in the back country.”

They followed SAR personnel instructions to stay put and dig a snow cave as shelter, the captain said. They were able to relay their GPS coordinates, before their cell phone’s battery lost power.

“The individuals’ winter preparation and knowledge of GPS coordinates allowed SAR personnel to locate them as quickly and safely as possible,” Mills added.
Copyright 2011 KTVZ. All rights reserved.


Comment by Robert_Speik
Once again, a GPS, an ordinary cell phone and informed and Prepared outdoors folks took the "Search" out of Search and Rescue! Thanks again Barney for pointing this out, and Capt. Marc Mills too!

The only thing they perhaps did wrong was to let their cell phone batteries get cold and die. And, did they only have one cell phone among the three adults?

As to cost, I have never been inside the Deschutes County Court House. I don't use it; why should I have to pay taxes to pay for it?

The actual dollar cost of this "Rescue" is not worth the administrative cost of proof, billing and collection. This uninformed political complaint about the cost of SAR services has long been proven un-productive. Oregon State Law provides for charging up to $500.00 from each individual for SAR services at the discretion of the Sheriff. Folks should complain to the Sheriff of each county in Oregon. Few have ever charged for their rescue services.

Here is more information: http://traditionalmountaineering.org/News_OpEd_Yuppie911.htm
 

http://www.ktvz.com/news/26322581/detail.html

1. Practice the Four Basic Responsibilities of the Backcountry Traveler. They work!  Basic Responsibilities

A suggested minimum standard news advisory for all backcountry travelers!

"We would like to take this opportunity to ask our visitors to the backcountry of Oregon to plan for the unexpected. Each person should dress for the forecast weather and take minimum extra clothing protection from a drop in temperature and possible rain or snow storm or an unexpected cold wet night out, insulation from the wet ground or snow, high carbohydrate snacks, two quarts of water or Gatorade, a map and compass and optional inexpensive GPS and the skills to use them, and a charged cell phone from a Provider that has the best coverage of the area and possibly, a SPOT-2 GPS Satellite Communicator. Each person should carry the traditional personal "Ten Essentials Systems" in a day pack sized for the individual, the trip, the season and the forecast weather.

Visitors are reminded to tell a Responsible Person where they are going, where they plan to park, when they will be back and to make sure that person understands that they are relied upon to call 911 at a certain time if the backcountry traveler has not returned. If you become lost or stranded, mark your location and stay still or move around your marked location to stay warm. Do not try to find your way until you are exhausted, or worse yet - wet. Wait for rescuers.

THE MISSION of TraditionalMountaineering.org

"To provide information and instruction about world-wide basic to advanced alpine mountain climbing safety skills and gear, on and off trail hiking, scrambling and light and fast Leave No Trace backpacking techniques based on the foundation of an appreciation for the Stewardship of the Land, all illustrated through photographs and accounts of actual shared mountaineering adventures."

TraditionalMountaineering is founded on the premise that "He who knows naught, knows not that he knows naught", that exploring the hills and summitting peaks have dangers that are hidden to the un-informed and that these inherent risks can be in part, identified and mitigated by mentoring: information, training, wonderful gear, and knowledge gained through the experiences of others.

The value of TraditionalMountaineering to our Friends is the selectivity of the information we provide, and its relevance to introducing folks to informed hiking on the trail, exploring off the trail, mountain travel and Leave-no-Trace light-weight bivy and backpacking, technical travel over steep snow, rock and ice, technical glacier travel and a little technical rock climbing on the way to the summit. Whatever your capabilities and interests, there is a place for everyone in traditional alpine mountaineering.

    WARNING - *DISCLAIMER!*
Mountain climbing has inherent dangers that can, only in part, be mitigated