Injured 11-year-old Redmond boy expected to recover after 40-foot fall from Smith Rock Park wall

After just two days, fund-raising page for expenses tops $43,000

TERREBONNE, Ore. (KTVZ) -- An 11-year-old Redmond boy is expected to recover from serious injuries suffered when he fell 40 feet while climbing a wall at Smith Rock State Park last Friday.

Cohen Schaumann was first flown by air ambulance to St. Charles Bend, then taken to a hospital in Portland. Even with several injuries to his organs, ribs and pelvis, he's said to be in good spirits.

A family friend of the Schaumanns, Brandon Lee, organized a fundraiser for the family to be able to pay Cohen's medical bills.

Lee said Tuesday of Cohen, "He's very active, he loves to snowboard. I think he got up to the mountain (Mt. Bachelor) like 22 times this year. He's always at the (BMX) pump track in Redmond as well."

Cohen was rock-climbing with his grandfather at the popular climbing site near Terrebonne when he fell.

"He knows that he was climbing. He knows that he fell," Lee said. "Like the second day (after the injury), he was able to spell out with his fingers on a chart that he couldn't believe he was alive."

Cohen suffered several injuries, including a broken pelvis, wrist, ankle, ribs, collapsed lungs, and a lacerated liver and kidney.

Lee says an off-duty Oregon State Police trooper who was at Smith Rock was able to provide the quick initial treatment.

"He's also a licensed paramedic, and he had his (medical) kit and began working on Cohen," Lee said. They were able to get him out quickly to where the helicopter picked him up."

In two days, a fundraiser set up by Lee to help with medical bills has raised more than $43,000. "That's just been overwhelming for them and it's just been so crucial at this time so they can focus on him."

A picture posted to Cohen's fundraiser page, taken on Tuesday by Lee, shows Cohen isn't losing his fighting spirit.

"So it's going to take a while until he's back to doing everything he wants to do, but he'll get there," Lee said. "He's just one of these determined people."

Cohen is recovering at Randall's Children's Hospital at Legacy Emanuel Medical in Portland. According to Lee, his family hopes he's moved out of the ICU very soon, and gets his neck brace off.

If you'd like to help the Schaumann family pay for Cohen's medical bills, you can donate to their fundraiser here.

A representative of the High Desert Climbers Alliance told us the fall happened in a beginners' area of Smith Rock.

"Part of rock climbing is inherent risk, and these things do happen from time to time, unfortunately," group President Max Tepfer said. "I think a good philosophy to adopt is an extremely high attention to details. If you build climbing systems properly and confirm you have done so every single time, then it's a very safe sport."