Portland Mountain Rescue (PMR) has been receiving many
generous offers from the public to assist for the rescue of the 3 climbers on
Mt. Hood, including from people with strong mountaineering and emergency
medicine backgrounds.
PMR appreciates these offers of assistance, but our
major hurdles in this rescue have been poor weather conditions and extremely
high avalanche hazards. We are not in the position of requiring human resources
from the general public. We have sixty field-deployable rescuers within our
unit who are highly trained to affect rescues in these conditions and who have
the ability to judge conditions and avoid overly hazardous situations. There
are also numerous other mountain rescue teams in our area which we can call
upon if resources are needed.
Additionally, mountain rescue is a hazardous endeavor
which requires specific skills and training. Teams must be cohesive, trained on
the same standards, and know each others abilities and limitations.
Portland Mountain Rescue has a rigorous application
and training program to ensure that our rescuers are as safe as possible.
Taking members of the general public or climbing community into the field
without specific mountain rescue training creates a greater risk to all
rescuers and the potential of more accidents on the mountain.
Those having strong mountaineering skills wishing to
participate in mountain rescue on a long-term basis should follow our
standard application process, posted on our website at:
http://www.pmru.org/aboutpmr.html
Those wishing to help mountain rescue, but who do not
have mountaineering skills, are encouraged to donate to their local mountain
rescue teams.
Portland Mountain Rescue is a 501c3 entirely volunteer
rescue organization with no paid employees. As with many other mountain rescue
organizations, we exist solely to “save lives through rescue and mountain
safety education.”
Any questions can be directed to us at:
http://www.pmru.org/contact.html
Lastly, Portland Mountain Rescue would like to thank
the community and everyone who has offered their support on this difficult
rescue.
Sincerely,
Steve Rollins
President
Portland Mountain Rescue
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