Family of US climber who died claims 911 rescue was delayed

The family of a climber who died on Mount Hood in Oregon has filed a $10 million wrongful death suit, alleging a delay in sending a rescue helicopter contributed to John Jenkins’s death.

CBS News reports 911 was first called on May 7, 2017, around 10am, after Jenkins fell around 600 feet near the mountain’s summit.

However, the fellow climber who called was transferred to Clackamas County Sheriff's Office and advised to contact ski patrol instead.

Volunteers arrived — and there was a second 911 call, followed by another call to the sheriff’s department for the helicopter.

The Blackhawk helicopter, shown in photos captured by Portland Mountain Rescue, arrived around at 3:11pm — around four-and-a-half hours after the initial call.

As he was lifted into it, Jenkins’s pulse reportedly stopped — and his cause of death was later ruled to be blunt force trauma, according to the Oregonian.

In the Jenkins family’s suit, they claim the emergency services agencies failed to mobilize the helicopter soon enough to save his life.

A county spokesman told CBS News: "The county is very proud of the fine work of the women and men who are involved in rescue efforts. They risk their lives to save the lives of others."

See images of a past rescue effort on Mount Hood: