Teenage Climber Survives 500 Foot Fall on Oregon's Tallest Mountain

A teenage boy who survived a 500 foot fall while climbing the tallest mountain in Oregon has been rescued, authorities said.

The 16-year-old was climbing Mount Hood with a group of people when he fell and injured his leg on Monday morning, the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office said.

He plunged from an area known as Pearly Gates, which is just below the final push to the mountain's summit, down to a part of the mountain called Devil's Kitchen, which is at an elevation of 10,500 feet, according to the sheriff's office.

The sheriff's office reported that his condition was stable after the fall, but the location and elevation of where he fell meant the rescue operation would take hours.

"The climber, a 16-year-old, has sustained a leg injury after falling approximately 500 feet. His condition is reported as 'stable' at this time. Due to the location and elevation of about 10,500ft, the rescue is expected to take several hours," the sheriff's office said on Twitter.

The sheriff's office added they received the call about the injured climber at around 9 a.m. and the first rescue team reached him at around 1 p.m.

"They began rendering care immediately, splinting the climber's leg," the sheriff's office said. After the climber was stabilized, rescuers began making their way down the mountain with him.

Lt. Brian Jensen, with the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office, urged other climbers to stay safe on the mountain due to weather conditions.

"CCSOSAR is making its way to a fallen climber on Mt. Hood today. A lot of climbers are up there today, please be prepared AND safe!" he tweeted.

"A cloud cap has rolled in but the rescuers are working down to @timberlinelodge with the patient. Expecting to be another hour or so…" he added in a follow-up tweet.

The boy was later safely transported to Timberline Lodge, where an ambulance awaited him, the sheriff's office said. "Thanks to all the search volunteers who helped with this successful operation today," the sheriff's office added.

The sheriff's office has been contacted for additional comment.

Mount Hood is one of the most climbed mountains in the world and more than 10,000 people reach its summit every year, according to the sheriff's office.

A report by Traveller magazine in 2016 said figures show Mount Hood is the third most climbed mountain in the world behind Japan's Mount Fuji and Mount Monadnock in New Hampshire, despite being a technical climb with no trails to the summit.

Mount Hood is Oregon's highest summit at 11,240 feet and is also a dormant volcano covered with 11 active glaciers, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service website.