Those Who Answer When The Call Goes Out

AVALANCHES are not uncommon on Mount Rainier, as 12 climbers learned to their horror. But what is extraordinary, according to amazed experts, is the luxury of trained people nearby to help.

What unfolded Thursday afternoon on the southeast shoulder of the mountain was a successful rescue that involved dozens of people. Some were directly involved in moving injured climbers off the mountain, and others - specialized climbing units, pilots, logistical experts and a yellow Labrador retriever - waited to help. What follows is a partial list of the names behind the term: rescuers.

The ice and snow cascading off Disappointment Cleaver swept through one of the busiest climbing routes. When the expedition from Rainier Mountaineering Inc. got hit, three RMI team guides - Ruth Mahre, Heidi Eichner and Brenda Walsh - were immediately joined by three guides from another expedition. RMI guide Curt Hewitt was injured, but helped in the rescue effort.

A cell-phone call from another climbing party set in motion a wave of action.

The Park Service maintains two high camps on Rainier at 10,000 feet during the climbing season: Camp Muir on the south side and Camp Sherman on the east. Three seasonal climbing rangers - George Beilsten, Stephen Lofgren and Mark Westman - hiked to the accident scene from Camp Muir. Another seasonal climbing ranger, Joe Puryear, and a volunteer, Dean Patterson, were flown in from Camp Sherman by Classic Helicopter of Seattle.

They were joined by ranger Mike Gauthier, who was on the summit on his day off when the avalanche happened. He became the lead ranger.

Back at park headquarters, Steve Winslow directed all the field teams, aircraft and related ground activity; Randy Brooks was plans chief; Nina Stevens oversaw logistics; Rick Kirschner coordinated medical care and triage.

Chief Ranger John Krambrink was incident commander, and park ranger Bill Larson, of emergency operations, was his deputy.

Washington has seven volunteer mountain search-and-rescue teams, and they are summoned through a telephone tree that begins with calls through the state emergency management network. Tacoma Mountain Rescue and Seattle Mountain Rescue each got calls.

Tacoma sent 11 members, including specialists in high-angle, high-altitude rescue, ground support and drivers. Mike Mixon was field leader for a climbing crew that included Jim Lewis, John Kirkman, Fran McFarland, Ken Capron, Jim Creamer, Roger Ternes and Phil Teltcher. As heavy clouds banked against the mountain, the Tacoma unit was sent on the long climb to the avalanche site. If helicopters remained grounded, the injured could be carried out.

A call went out to Crystal Mountain for Paul Baugher, an expert in avalanche searches. Both Baugher and his yellow Lab are trained and experienced in high-elevation work in hazardous conditions. Their skills did not have to be used.

Two military aircraft were dispatched from Fort Lewis. One was a UH60 Blackhawk medical evacuation helicopter from the 54th Medical Company Air Ambulance. The crew was pilot CW2 Thomas Wall, co-pilot Capt. Kyle Patterson, medic Staff Sgt. Gilberto Vallejo and crew chief Spc. Kassel Coon. The Blackhawk carried two other medics to the site: Sgt. Joseph Sands and Sgt. Terry Eldridge.

On the mountain, Sands and Eldridge flew aboard a CH47 helicopter from the 214th Aviation crewed by pilot CW2 Jeff Sopp, co-pilot CW2 Ross Sullivan, flight engineer Sgt. Larry Westmoreland and crew chiefs Spc. Rex Davis and Spc. Christopher Rossmeisl. High-altitude rescue flights take specialized training, and a lucky break had the right crew members rotating back from duty in Yakima when the call came from Mount Rainier, otherwise it would have stayed on the ground. The CH47 eventually carried five injured and one fatality off the mountain.

An extraordinary ballet of trained and talented people came together to save lives. Their contributions should not remain anonymous.