Man rescued from Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

LINN COUNTY Ore. (KPTV) - A man was rescued from the Mount Jefferson Wilderness after search and rescue members hiked through the night to reach him.

At about 9:42 p.m. Monday, the Linn County Sheriff’s Office responded to a rescue on the Pacific Crest Train near South Cinder Peak in the Mount Jefferson Wilderness. Curtis Nitschelm, 64, had been camping and hunting in the area when he started feeling sick and was unable to move.

At around 11 p.m., a life flight air ambulance responded but was unable to land due to the lack of landing zones nearby. Members from the Search and Rescue team responded to the closest access point to where Nitschelm was, the Cabot Lake Trailhead in Jefferson County.

The SAR team hiked all night to get to Nitschelm, who was still severely ill when they arrived. SAR medical personnel provided care until a United States Coast Guard helicopter was able to respond and hoist Nitschelm into the helicopter at approximately 8 a.m. Tuesday.

Nitschelm was flown to the Redmond Municipal Airport where he was then taken to a hospital via ambulance.