Medical Rescue Leads To Felony Arrest

On October 26th, a man contacted rangers and reported that his wife had been experiencing severe abdominal pain for several days and that she remained at a remote backcountry campsite alone, awaiting help. The ensuing rescue effort was hampered by poor weather, but rangers and volunteers from Bellingham Mountain Rescue were able to reach her and begin providing emergency care. During a window of good weather on October 28th, she was evacuated by helicopter and taken to a hospital. The woman then underwent surgery for an ectopic pregnancy that doctors said would otherwise have been fatal that day. Follow-up interviews by a ranger on the couple's unusual backcountry trip revealed that the husband and wife were using aliases during the incident. The man was found to have a warrant out against him. He was arrested and extradited to Michigan. The couple was actually trying to flee into Canada via the 20-mile-long trail that leads into British Columbia.