Ralph Johnson letter to Thomas Jessett thanking him for his support of the Mountain Rescue Council along with a MRC membership card, February 21, 1955

• Main Author: Johnson, Ralph
• Other Authors: University of Washington Libraries. Special Collections
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: unknown
• Subjects: XYZ; Trott; glacier; Alaska
• Online Access: http://cdm16786.contentdm.oclc.org:80/cdm/ref/collection/pioneerlife/id/14910

Ralph Johnson, the executive secretary of the Mountain Rescue Council wrote to Jessett, thanking him for his continued support of the Council in memory of his son, Arthur Jessett. Johnson writes, "I regret that I was not able to know your son, Thomas Arthur Jessett prior to his death on Mt. St. Helens. However, there is little question in my mind but that he did, by virtue of this tragic accident, contribute more toward the furtherance of mountain rescue work than those of use who attempted his or other rescues." Enclosed is a Mountain Rescue Council membership card created for Arthur Jessett, listing him as a sustaining member of the Council. On May 18, Arthur Jessett, a student at the University of Washington, fell 90 feet into a crevasse while descending from the summit of Mount Saint Helens. Jessett, although injured and pinned tightly within the crevasse, survived the initial fall and was able to communicate with his three climbing companions, telling them he was tightly wedged against the ice with a possible broken arm. Unfortunately, his friends were helpless to rescue him because the only rope carried by the party was trapped in Jessett’s backpack. Two of Jessett’s companions went to get help while the third stayed at the scene of the accident. The two men who went to get help intercepted another party coming down from the summit only to discover they were not carrying any rope. When they finally secured rope from a ski cabin at Timberline, they made a rescue attempt by lowering one of the young men, Manford Oliphant, into the crevasse but found that the rope was too short, allowing the would-be rescuer to descend only 60 or 75 feet into the crevasse. Oliphant could hear Jessett’s moans but found he was apparently unconscious by this time and unresponsive to questions. Although a request for help was sent to the Mountain Rescue Council in the afternoon, a few hours after the accident, it did not reach them until 10:30 p.m. Arriving at the scene early Monday morning, members of the Council were prevented from attempting a rescue by the darkness. In the morning they found that they were too late to save Jessett who had died hours before. Council members Jim and Louis Whittaker were lowered into the crevasse to extract his body and bring it down the mountain where Jessett’s family, including his father, Reverend Thomas Jessett, waited. Later analysis of the event suggested that the accident could have been prevented if the group had followed standard mountain safety procedures and been roped together for their descent across the glacier or been more experienced with mountain rescue. The accident gained national attention and served as a catalyst to increase support for the Mountain Rescue Council and promote mountain safety. Reverend Jessett became a strong supporter of the Council, making frequent donations and speaking out on the importance of safe climbing practices. The Mountain Rescue Council was established in 1948 by a group of veteran climbers including Ome Daiber, Wolf Bauer, Arne Campbell, Max Eckenburg, Dorrell Looff, Kurt Beam and Dr. Otto Trott. Many of the members were already experienced in rescue operations and recognized a need for a more formalized rescue service because of the increasing popularity of outdoor recreation, specifically mountain climbing. As demand increased, local chapters of the Mountain Rescue Council were established outside of Seattle. Between 1952 and 1953 the organization was involved in 15 full-scale rescue operations involving incidents from avalanches to plane crashes. They gained recognition and began fundraising to obtain the proper equipment to meet the needs of a large rescue organization. In 1959, the National Mountain Rescue Association was formed including groups from Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Colorado, Arizona and California. In 1960, Mountain Rescue Council Members Pete Schoening and Lou and Jim Whittaker along with their companion John Day were involved in an accident on Mount McKinley. Members of the Rescue Council from Washington and Oregon responded and were able to evacuate the most seriously injured of the men via helicopter at an elevation of 17,200. This was the first rescue of that kind at such a high elevation. Other members of the party were helped down from the mountain in the face of serious storms which temporarily stranded them for ten days. The Mountain Rescue Council has since been renamed Seattle Mountain Rescue and currently performs about 30 rescue missions every year.