Grand Canyon rescue
Sedona AZ (November 4, 2014) – An injured female hiker, 68, was rescued Monday by a team composed of the National Park Service, Coconino County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue, Arizona Department of Public Safety Air Rescue Helicopter and Flagstaff Fire Department.
On Sunday, November 2, a female hiker from Tucson, Arizona was hiking the Clear Creek Trail in the Grand Canyon with two other hikers. Around 7:00 PM, she slipped and fell down a slope off the trail, stopping head down and about three feet from a cliff’s edge that dropped 80 feet to the creek bed below. When the hiker attempted to recover and move, she would slide further down slope. Fearing that she would slide over the cliff edge, she remained still as her two friends activated a satellite emergency notification device or SPOT device.
The National Park Service at the Grand Canyon’s South Rim was advised of the emergency notification and sent a ranger to area of the SPOT alert. The Park Service Ranger hiked for six hours from Phantom Ranch, reaching the victim around 3:00 AM. Rangers determined the victim had suffered a leg injury. Due to the dangerous and unstable ground, the Park Service requested assistance from the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Unit and the Arizona Department of Public Safety Air Rescue helicopter which have the capability to conduct night operations.
Injured hiker prepared for air evacuation
The DPS helicopter flew two heli-rescue members, one from the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office and the other from the Flagstaff Fire Department into the canyon where they were able to land about a mile away from the victim. Rescuers hiked to the area where they had to secure ropes and rappel down to the victim. The victim was secured by a harness and then “short hauled” or flown out with a rescuer.
The injured hiker was flown to the Grand Canyon Heli-base at the South Rim where she was transferred to a ground ambulance and taken to the Grand Canyon Clinic. She was treated for a fractured ankle and hypothermia and later released.
This rescue was an outstanding cooperative effort of participating agencies and the culmination of countless hours of training required of rescuers to safely complete missions such as this.
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She was a lucky lady…Wouldn’t get me doing anything like that…Am scared of heights
My view is old people over 50 ought to be restricted or have to stay off high trails and climbing peaks!!! It cost a lot of money to rescue her & she knew her health problems. Why doesn’t she have to pay it back? I don’t care what you people say. Get disgusted seeing all the gray hairs with walking sticks & dogs that (deleted by editor) taking up room on the hills!!! They gotta be tired rescuing stupid old people!!! You don’t impress!!! Stay home with your cats & (deleted by editor) dogs & (deleted by editor) pills!!!
OTFLMAO Keil my bff (39) went out with senior guy (58) last week, said he loves hiking. whatttttttt a JOKEEEEE. Furgittaboutit LOVES himself & talked about himself INCESSENTLY!!!! Thinks he looks young. JOKEEEE YA GRAY EVERY WHERE=THAT MIRROR LYING =WHAT’S NOT WORKING BESIDES YA 58 OLD POOR-STATE???) You’re right. That hiker needs to pay up.
Good article!
It isn’t nice talking badly of older people like you did. You must respect them because older people like my parents are 58 and 55 and my kids look up to them for examples. We want them to get to be at least 70 before dying or even older because people are living longer. I hope you go to Church and learn better.