Tragic Incident On Mount St. Helens: Snowboarder’s Fatal Fall

A person is dead after a tragic snowboarding event on Mount St. Helens. 

Last weekend (March 30th, 2024) the Skamania County Sheriff’s Office Communications Center got a call of a dead body in a crater of Mt. St Helens.

According to deputies, that morning, a climbing group reached the summit of Mt. St Helens near the Monitor Ridge Climbing Route. The climbers located a backpack, digital recording devices, and other personal items near the rim of the crater. Near the personal belongings, a snow cornice near the rim fractured and fell into the crater of the mountain. The climbing group reported observing a body within the crater of the volcano approximately 1200 feet below the summit. 

The Skamania County Sheriff’s Office organized a search & rescue mission to recover the subject. Members of the Volcano Rescue Team (V.R.T.) based out of Yacolt, WA responded along with J& L Aviation Helicopters to recover the body. Members of the Volcano Rescue Team were airlifted to the crater of the volcano where they ascended on foot to the recovery location. The V.R.T. rescue personnel conducted a successful recovery, and the body was flown to the incident command at the Marble Mountain Sno-Park. 

Investigators identified the victim as 42-year-old Roscoe (Rocky) Shorey, of Washougal, Washington.  

After the event, deputies issued the following statement. “The Skamania County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank the North County Emergency Medical Services, Volcano Rescue Team, and J&L Aviation for their efforts in the recovery.”