Inyo SAR Incident Mt. Whitney 8/13
Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2018 3:47 pm
Inyo Co Sheriff's Dept:
On August 13, 2018, at 2:45 pm, Inyo County Sheriff's Office requested H-80 for a rescue of a female hiker from Trail Camp (12,000 ft elev). The hiker had reached the summit of Mt Whitney earlier that morning, but had inadvertently injured her knee in the process. She managed to descend to Trail Camp (took her 6 hrs) before communication for rescue could be made. She then continued to descend for the next five hours, with assistance, finally reaching Outpost Camp. H-80 was able to land at Outpost Camp where the crew and a Forest Ranger assisted the hiker to the helicopter and evacuated her to Lone Pine Airport and awaiting medical care. This hiker did a great job self-rescuing and bettering her position under very painful and exhausting circumstances.
Landing in remote areas can get you up close and personal with nature. Flight Officer/Paramedic Michael Cole managed to snap a selfie with a young buck near the LZ!
