Smith Rock climber injured in 15-foot fall rescued by Deschutes County SAR, partners

TERREBONNE, Ore. (KTVZ) – A California woman injured in a 15-foot fall while climbing Monday at Smith Rock State Park was rescued in a joint effort by Deschutes County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue volunteers, Redmond Fire medics and Oregon State Parks, deputies said Tuesday.

Deschutes County dispatch got a 911 call around 2:30 p.m. from a male climber at the park who said his female climbing partner had fallen about 15 feet and sustained injuries, said Deputy Shane Zook, assistant SAR coordinator.

A DCSO Special Services deputy responded to the park, as did Redmond Fire medics. The deputy also paged out for Search and Rescue volunteers to respond, and 18 did so, Zook said.

The deputy, two Redmond Fire members and a state park employee went to the location of the 26-year-old Lake Tahoe woman, in the Monument climbing area. Zook said she was found in a ravine, several hundred yards above the canyon floor.

Redmond Fire medics assessed the climber’s injuries and provided pain management medication until SAR arrived on scene and joined in patient care, preparing her to be moved down the ravine in a litter.

Members of SAR’s Mountain Rescue Team set up a technical rope system to help lower the litter through some vertical areas in the ravine, Zook said.

Once the patient was ready, SAR members, along with Redmond Fire and a state park employee, began moving the climber down through some difficult terrain, eventually reaching the canyon floor, the deputy said. She was then carried in a wheeled litter to a waiting ambulance.

“This was a team effort,” Zook wrote in a news release, “and the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank Redmond Fire and the Oregon State Parks for their assistance in this rescue.”