Technology Slice

Mt St Helens Rescue

Joseph Bohlig, 52, had just reached the summit of Mount St Helens in Washington state in the US, and wanted to mark the moment with a picture.

After stripping off his jacket and backpack he handed his camera to another climber, telling him to make sure to get the scenic outline of Mount Rainierin the background.

“Boom, it busted off and I saw him clawing for the edge with a startled look on his face and then he disappeared,” Mr Bohlig’s climbing companion Scott Salkovics, said. “I was looking right at him, he was only 10 feet away.”told the KGW television station in Portland, Oregon.

Mr Salkovics, an Army rescue pilot, told the KGW television station in Portland, Oregon, that he threw a jacket, an avalanche beacon, food and water into the crater after his friend.

Mr Bohlig tumbled 1,500ft down the near vertical inside of the crater and the bag of supplies came to rest 300ft away.

Rescuers have launched a desperate bid to get to Mr Bohlig but were being hampered by high winds and white-out conditions.

Tags: Army, Avalanche Beacon, Backpack, boom, Companion, High Winds, Mount St Helens, Mount Washington, Mt St Helens, Portland Oregon, Rescue Pilot, Rescuers, St Joseph, Summit, Television Station, Washington State
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