Two injured climbers, a man and a woman, were airlifted to safety by the Oregon National Guard after falling Saturday morning on Mount Hood. Deputy Ben Frazier said that the call for help was received just before 11 a.m. A third climber who was with the group but not seriously injured managed to make it down the mountain with help from rescuers.

The climbers were trekking along a south-side route near a snow ridge known as Hogsback, according to the Clackamas County sheriff’s office. The route is a popular one, and it is unknown what caused the fall, as weather conditions were good with sunny, clear skies. Hogsback stands at about 10,000 feet of elevation.

The female climber has two broken ankles, while the male climber may have a broken femur, said Frazier.

Members of American Medical Response and Portland Mountain Rescue, a volunteer search and rescue group, reached the climbers first and helped paramedics to stabilize them. The rescuers and paramedics then relocated the injured climbers to a nearby area accessible to the rescue helicopters. The National Guard helicopters plucked the climbers off the mountain around 4 p.m. and conveyed them to the Legacy Emmanuel Medical Center in Portland for treatment.

The names of the climbers will not be released at this time, said the sheriff’s office.

Sheriff’s Deputy Mark Nikolai praised the alertness of the members of the Portland Mountain Rescue. One of the organization’s teams was already training on the mountainside when the call for help came and was able to reach the injured climbers quickly.