Hiker’s Life Saved Through Rapid Multi-Agency Response

On September 17th, park staff and personnel from the Chester Fire Department, Mountain Life-flight and California Department of Forestry (CDF) responded to a report of a hiker in distress on the PCT trail near Boiling Springs Lake. Drakesbad Guest Ranch employees received the initial report and immediately hiked out the trail to find the hiker and guide rescuers to her location.  Park staff and Chester Fire Department paramedics also responded. The hiker, an elderly woman with a history of cardiac problems, was experiencing a severe cardiac emergency and having difficulty breathing. Due to the remote location, CDF transported the patient via short-haul to the guest ranch, where she was transferred to Mountain Life-flight and flown to Mercy Hospital in Redding. Doctors told rescuers that she would not have survived without their rapid response. Eric Hensel was IC.