Fallen, injured Broken Top climber rescued
An Oregon City woman was injured in a 25-foot fall near the summit of Broken Top Mountain on Sunday when she lost her footing and a large rock she grabbed gave way and later rolled over her, prompting a nine-hour rescue effort and Oregon National Guard flight to a Bend hospital.
Deschutes County dispatchers received several 911 calls around 9:40 a.m. from people near the summit of the 9,177-foot peak about the injured climber, later identified as Sarah Rask, 29, said sheriff’s Deputy Joshua Westfall, assistant search and rescue coordinator.
The callers said Rask was immobile and, though anchored, was in a precarious position near a 60- to 70-foot cliff.
Westfall said it was later determined that Rask had unintentionally gone off trail and lost her footing.
“As she did so, she grabbed a large rock about the size of a mini-fridge with both hands, which gave way and resulted in her fall,” the deputy said in a news release. “At some point during her fall, the rock she had grabbed onto rolled over her, then reportedly continued to roll all the way down the mountain.”
Due to Rask’s injuries and position on the mountain, 17 Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue volunteers responded to assist, Westfall said.
They also requested the help of the Oregon Army National Guard, which sent a Salem-based Blackhawk helicopter to the summit, where their medical team was lowered to Rask’s location. Another SAR volunteer who had been recreating on nearby South Sister also learned of the call and went to assist the responding helicopter.
Rask was stabilized and lifted off the mountain in a litter by hoist, then flown to St. Charles Bend, where a house supervisor said she was in fair condition Sunday night.
Westfall said the sheriff’s office wanted to thank the Oregon Army National Guard for its assistance, as well as citizens who provided vital information to sheriff’s personnel, also rendering assistance to Rask while waiting for first responders to arrive.
