Deschutes County Search and Rescue and Redmond Fire helped an injured climber to safety Monday at Smith Rock State Park.
Asst. SAR Coordinator Dep. Shane Zook said dispatch got a call around 2:30 p.m. from a climber who said his partner had fallen about 15 feet and was injured.
A special service deputy, two members of the Redmond Fire Department and one State Park employee responded to the location of the injured climber, which was in the Monument climbing area.
Zook said the climber, a 26-year-old woman from Lake Tahoe, was located in a ravine, several hundred yards up from the canyon floor.
Members of the Redmond Fire Department assessed the climber’s injuries and provided pain management medication until about 18 Search and Rescue volunteers arrived on scene.
When Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue arrived on scene, the medical team members began providing patient care and preparing the injured climber to be moved down the ravine in a litter.
Members of the Mountain Rescue Team began preparing a technical rope system to assist in lowering the litter through some vertical areas within the ravine.
Once the patient was ready, Search and Rescue members along with Redmond Fire and a State Park employee began moving the climber down through some tough terrain, eventually reaching the canyon floor.
Zook said the climber was then carried out to an awaiting ambulance in a wheeled litter.
This was a team effort and the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank Redmond Fire and the Oregon State Parks for their assistance in this rescue.
