PORTLAND, Ore. -- The Clackamas County sheriff's office says a helicopter rescue operation is underway on Mount Hood after two climbers were injured.
Deputy Ben Frazier says the climbers, one male and one female, were injured after they fell early Saturday near an area on the mountain known as the Hogsback. A call for help was received about 11 a.m.
An Oregon National Guard helicopter will airlift the two injured climbers off the mountain.
Frazier says the male climber has a suspected broken femur, while the female climber has two broken ankles.
A third climber, another male who was also with them, was able to make it down the mountain with help.
The climbers were on the popular south-side climbing route. Frazier said he did not know what caused them to fall. Weather conditions near the mountain were good Saturday: clear skies and sun. Hogsback is at about 10,000 feet elevation.
Members of Portland Mountain Rescue, a volunteer search and rescue group, and American Medical Response reached the injured climbers earlier in the day and helped stabilize them.
