Mount Rainier climbers rescued after being stranded three days

Four climbers have been rescued after spending three days stranded at about 13,500 feet on the north side of Mount Rainier in Washington state, the National Park Service said Thursday.

The men were spotted signaling for help Monday afternoon by a reconnaissance helicopter. They were unable to continue the climb up the mountain, about 75 miles southeast of Seattle, because of high winds that blew away or destroyed their tent and other equipment. The difficult conditions also prevented a rescue by helicopter.

At about 9:15 a.m. Thursday, a helicopter was finally able to land in the saddle between Liberty Cap and Columbia Crest during a window of good weather, according to the park service. By 10:15 a.m., the climbers were off the mountain.

Rangers were able to confirm the identities of the four men as Yevgeniy Krasnitskiy of Oregon, Ruslan Khasbulatov of New Jersey, Vasily Aushev of New York and Constantine Toporov of New York.

All four, who were suffering from frostbite and cold exposure, were being released from Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, a hospital spokeswoman said Thursday night.

They began their ascent from White River Campground on Friday, and Mount Rainier's Communications Center received a 911 call on Monday reporting that the climbers had been stranded.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

Efforts to reach the men by air throughout the week were thwarted because of high winds, the park service said. Rangers prepared numerous contingency plans, including air and ground rescue options, to implement Thursday if the opportunities arose.

Even an Army Chinook helicopter from Joint Base Lewis-McChord was unable to reach the men twice on Tuesday, first because of cloud cover and then because of the wind, it said Wednesday.

The challenging, technically dangerous Liberty Ridge route is the same one where Arleigh William Dean, 45, of Alaska was killed and two other hikers were injured when they were caught in a rockfall May 29. Three other hikers were uninjured.