A Navy search and rescue team completed a successful mission last week, rescuing an injured hiker from Mount St. Helens.
According to Military Times, the search and rescue team from Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington, was able to rescue the hiker who had suffered a broken ankle during a climb on the southern rim of the mountain.
The Navy search and rescue team was contacted by the Mount St. Helen Volcano Rescue Team late in the day on July 26. The Mount St. Helen Volcano Rescue Team requested aerial transportation to assist in the recovery of a 63-year-old hiker who had reached an altitude of over 7,500 feet.
Military Times reported that the Navy’s search and rescue team arrived at the location of the hiker around 1 a.m. on July 27.
In a statement regarding the rescue, the Navy said, “After making a visual inspection of the area to determine the best course of action, the crew conducted a one-wheel landing on a mountain-side shoulder to insert two SAR team members with a litter.”
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While the search and rescue team secured the 63-year-old hiker, the search and rescue aviators were able to conduct a “visual inspection to scope out the landing area where an ambulance was waiting to transport the patient,” according to the Navy’s statement.
After the search and rescue team successfully secured the injured hiker in the helicopter, the hiker was transported to an ambulance crew for medical care.
According to Military Times, the recent search and rescue mission of the injured hiker on Mount St. Helens is one of 23 missions the team has completed so far this year. The team’s operations have included a medical evacuation, four search missions, and 18 rescue missions.
