After being airlifted in an early-morning rescue, an unidentified man is said to be in serious condition in Whitehorse General Hospital after he was crushed by the weight of his own ATV Thursday night.

Whitehorse Fire Chief Clive Sparks said today members of his department were dispatched by helicopter early this morning to perform a mountain-top 'rope rescue' near the Yukon River Bridge in the Marsh Lake area south of Whitehorse.

'We got the call a little before 6:30 a.m. this morning,' said Sparks.

His department was called in after Marsh Lake Fire and Rescue (MFLR) teams were unable to reach the man with their ATVs.

Sparks said members of his crew joined in on a 'team effort' with the RCMP, Whitehorse ambulance crews and the Marsh Lake teams to rescue the man. He had tumbled down a 90-metre (300-foot) embankment while out on an excursion with three of his friends.

According to 9-1-1 dispatcher Donna Larsen, MFLR teams were dispatched after two of the injured man's friends made their way down the mountain and called her from a nearby resident's home at about 2 a.m.

'Our crew actually went to the scene but never made it to the scene,' she said.

'They went by ATVs because it was too (dark) for the helicopter to fly. (When they couldn't make it), we had to call in the big boys with the helicopter,' Larsen said.

She said she believed the accident occurred sometime near 11:30 p.m. (Thursday) and that she was not sure what the men were doing on their ATVs on the mountain so late at night.

Sparks said members of his department along with others on the scene were able to use a rope to rescue the man, whose injuries are considered 'serious.'

'This is a relatively new service (rope rescue) that started about two years ago,' he said. 'We made the decision to get into this (type of rescue) and got approval from council.'

Sparks said there have been three such rescues this year using the $70,000 'rope rescue' equipment and felt that the two-year-old service 'has already paid for itself' in terms of public safety.

'It was a good investment by the citizens of the City of Whitehorse,' he said.

Sparks said he felt it was the team effort that made the rescue go so smoothly.

'Everybody deserves the credit for this one,' he said.