Strong winds hampered Mt. Shasta rescue effort
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Strong winds hampered Mt. Shasta rescue effort
A hometown was not identified.
Sheriff's officials reported Friday that Sieleman's 16-year-old-son, who was not identified, called 911 around 9:30 a.m., to report his father had fallen from the top of Red Banks, which is at the approximate 12,820-foot elevation.
The teen later told search and rescue personnel that his father was climbing the mountain when he fell 150 yards down a steep, rugged, ice-covered slope and that he appeared to be immobilized.
Search and rescue workers, who were sent to the Bunny Flat trail head, requested the assistance of rescue helicopters from the California Highway Patrol and the California
Army National Guard.
The CHP helicopter, the first to arrive, attempted rescues with a hoist, but strong and gusty winds prevented it from successfully carrying out those efforts.
A short time later, the National Guard helicopter arrived and launched another rescue mission to try to save the injured hiker, sheriff's personnel said.
The crew was able to reach the man and take him off the mountain, but he was pronounced dead by the on-board medic.
The man's body was flown to Mercy Medical Center in Mount Shasta where family members were waiting.
The helicopter returned to the mountain and picked up the man's son at the 12,000-foot elevation and flew him to the hospital to be reunited with his family.
Despite the man's death, Siskiyou County Sheriff Jon Lopey praised those involved in the efforts to try to save his life.
"This mission was a hazardous, life-saving effort that was accomplished by several federal, state and local agencies," he said in a news release. "This incident illustrates the dedication, training readiness, team work, and valor that is so often exhibited by federal, state, and local air crews, search and rescue personnel, rescue climbers and others willing to risk their lives to save others."
He also said the incident highlights the fact that changing conditions on Mt. Shasta, especially at higher elevations, often hamper climbers and rescue personnel.
Last month, a 75-year-old Auburn man died after he fell at the mountain's 10,000-foot elevation.
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