By News-Register staff • 

McMinnville climber killed in Mount Jefferson fall

 

A McMinnville mountain climber, 32-year-old Tommy Fountain, was killed Sunday when he fell into a crevasse on Mount Jefferson.

His wife, 29-year-old Alison Fountain, who was climbing with her husband, did not fall and was able to communicate with searchers via text message.

"She's been brought off the mountain and is with family," Lt. Chris Baldrige of the Marion County Sheriff's Office said Monday morning. He confirmed the couple is from McMinnville.

Baldridge said rescue crews were working to bring her husband's body down, too, and their efforts were dependent on weather conditions to a large degree.

Mount Jefferson is part of the Cascade Range and is the second highest mountain in Oregon. It is situated in the far northeastern corner of Linn County on the Jefferson County line, with the lower reaches extending northward into southeastern Marion County.

The mountain, about 105 miles east of Corvallis, is in a rugged wilderness and is considered one of the hardest Pacific Northwest mountains to scale.

The Fountains' vehicle was located at a trailhead in Marion County. A search for the couple was immediately launched. Crews reached the couple about 9 a.m. Monday.

 

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