SAR, Life Flight aid distressed hikers on Canaan Mountain

ROCKVILLEWashington County Sheriff Search and Rescue and Life Flight aided two distressed hikers on Canaan Mountain Thursday afternoon.

The hikers, a man and woman, were walking on Eagle Crags Trail, which leads from Rockville to Colorado City, Ariz. around 5 p.m. They had traveled about 10 miles (roughly half the trail) before running out of water and suffering symptoms of dehydration and heat exhaustion. The man used his cell phone to call a friend for help, who alerted Search and Rescue to the situation.

The county’s search and rescue team responded to the call and deployed a ground crew. Life Flight soon located the hikers from the air and landed nearby. The hikers were transported back to their vehicle in Rockville. They were in stable condition and did not require medical attention; the rescue operation was over by 7:20 p.m.

SAR Commander Casey Lofthouse said that dehydration and heat exhaustion are very serious conditions that can devolve quickly, and the hikers were extremely lucky that the rescue operation turned out as well as it did. However, the entire situation could have been prevented.

“We’ve had a lot of calls for this same thing throughout the summer. People need to remember to take enough water and plan a hike they’re sure they can complete,” Lofthouse said. “If Life Flight had been on another priority call, they would have been stuck out there for hours more and their situation could have gone from bad to worse. Please plan and be cautious.”

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