One on Saturday, Two on Sunday

This year's Labor Day weekend proved to be busy as our Unit responded to multiple rescues from one end of the valley to the other.  From Mt. Charleston to Lake Mead, we responded to various reports.

Saturday, August 30th

Two officers and one volunteer responded to reports of two hikers who had been hiking in Red Springs.  After hiking for about 3 hours, the couple began scrambling up one of the faces where they ended up on a ledge where they could no longer climb up or down.

One officer and one volunteer hiked to the location of the climbers where they discovered them stranded, but with no injuries.  Our Air Unit responded with the Huey and conducted a hoist rescue to retrieve the two stranded climbers from the ledge.  They were transported to the parking lot.

Sunday, August 31st

At 0930, our unit responded to reports of an ATV accident in Cold Creek at Wheeler Pass.  Two females had been riding on an ATV when it flipped over on them.  One female complained of extreme back and hip pain while the second female sustained major facial injuries.

Two pilots, two officers, and one volunteer responded to the area in the Huey where they met the local volunteer fire department who had hiked to the patients.  Medical care was provided to both patients while on the ground and each of the patients were transported by the Huey to Mercy Air who had been dispatched to the area.

The female driving the ATV was wearing a helmet, but broke her nose and orbital sockets as a result of the handle bar entering into the face shield area of the helmet.  The female riding on the back of the ATV was not wearing a helmet and was crushed when the quad and driver rolled on top of her.  She suffered a broken back and damage to one of her hips.  Both were transported to UMC.

Shortly after responding to the ATV accident at Wheeler Pass, our unit responded to a hiker who had ledged out while hiking the closed Gold Strike Canyon trail at Lake Mead.

In an effort to enter the trail, the hiker parked and hiked from above the trailhead, dropping onto the trail.  As he tried to slide his way down into the canyon, he ended up getting stranded about 60 feet from the floor of the canyon and was unable to climb up or down.  The same crew that responded to Wheeler Pass also responded to Gold Strike Canyon.

Because of the power lines located above the trail in Gold Strike, the crew was unable to conduct a hoist mission.  Instead, one officer and one volunteer were dropped off above the hiker where the set up technical systems.

One rescuer was eventually lowered to the hiker where a pick-off was conducted.  Once the hiker was secure, both the rescuer and hiker were lowered to the ground.  No injuries were sustained and the hiker was ultimately handed off to NPS Rangers.

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2012 Flash Floods

This year the Las Vegas Valley has been hit hard with Flash Floods due to high amounts of rain. We can't emphasize enough how dangerous flood waters can be. We highly recommend that you stay away from washes during times of flooding, don't drive through water, and stick to dry ground.

In late August, our Volunteers spent countless hours searching for William Mootz, a Henderson teen who was swept away in a wash on the East side of Las Vegas.  His body was eventually found by rescuers.  William's story can be found here.

Yesterday, our Unit rescued over 15 people from their vehicles. These drivers drove through water while water levels were low, however, were overcome by water as those levels quickly rose without warning. Video of some of these rescues can be found here.

Today our Officers and Volunteers are out searching for Calletano Lopez, a Maintenance worker who is believed to have been swept away by flood waters yesterday.   News about this story can be found here.

When flash floods consume the valley, stay away!

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80 Foot Fall Near Angel Food Wall

Last night at approximately 6:30pm, SAR Officers received reports of a 61 year old man who had fallen approximately 80 feet near Angel Food Wall.  It was reported that the man had originally lost consciousness, was now awake, and had suffered injuries to his face.

As the call came in, the Mountain Rescue team was preparing to start one of its monthly training sessions and happened to already be geared up and in the area.

One Officer and one volunteer, a neurosurgeon, were initially flown by helicopter to the area.  After locating the fallen climber from the air, both officer and volunteer were dropped off about 200 feet above the climber.  As they made their way to the climber, one officer and 7 other volunteers prepared necessary gear to help with the rescue.  Upon initial medical assessment, it was found that the climber had suffered wounds to his face, including his nose and a laceration above his right eye.  Abrasions were also discovered on the lower portion of his back.

Although winds were extremely high, pilots were able to deposit a majority of the team to the LZ above the climber while two team members were dropped off at a location below.  All teams made their way to the location of the climber where he was treated and packaged into the litter.  From there, the team began a scree evacuation, moving the climber down the Angel Food Wall approach.

After nearly 4 hours of locating and extracting the climber, the canyon opened up and rescuers were able to find an LZ.  Pilots once again battled winds to remove the climber first, who was delivered to a waiting ambulance located at the Mt. Charleston overlook.  Once the climber was handed off, the climber's guide was flown out along with the rest of the team.  The climber was transported to UMC.

Here's a video of the night time helicopter extraction out of the base of the Angel Food Wall approach.

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Body Identified as Ron Kirk

Yesterday, the Clark County Coroner's office identified the body recovered by LVMPDSAR on Saturday to be that of Ron Kirk.

Not only was our Unit involved in this search, but so were hundreds of local residents.  Our deepest condolences go out to the family and friends of Ron.

Further information on this story can be found here.

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North Loop Trail Rescue

On Tuesday, February 21 at approximately 1200 hours, LVMPDSAR received reports of a man who had gone snowshoeing up the south loop trail and decided to try to short cut the north loop trail until he ended up on the cliff bands below the ridge.

Two pilots and three Officers flew in the Huey to the area and located the uninjured victim at 1245.

One Officer was lowered via hoist to the ground where he was able to prepare the victim in the Bauman Screamer Suit for the hoist into the helicopter.

Once placed in the suit, the Victim and Officer were hoisted into the Huey where both were secured inside the aircraft. The Victim was then flown to a landing zone where U.S. Forestry and LVMPD Resident officers were waiting.

The victim was located within the vicinity of N 36 16.825, W 115 41.187 at 9600 feet

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Two Person Lowers & Two Rescues

Last weekend, our Air Unit and Mountain Rescue volunteers worked together to conduct a training session on the ridgeline of Calico 1 at Red Rock.  The volunteers were split into 3 teams and were placed in separate locations.  Each team worked on various raising and lowering techniques with both one-person and two-person loads.

Splitting the Unit into 3 separate teams does a couple of things.  It gives our team the ability to work in a tight-knit group and it allows everyone to practice working at each station.  As you know, it takes multiple people to conduct a rescue, so we strive to emulate real-world scenarios in our training sessions.

As the Unit was conducting its training session, the Sergeant received information on reports of a fallen climber in Calico II.  Since the team was so close, the helicopter picked up two rescuers from Calico I and headed to the area of the fallen climber.  After finding her and assessing the situation, it was determined that her injuries were minor.  Fire crews completed the assessment and treatment as rescuers left the scene.

As Mountain Rescue volunteers left Sunday's training session, a second call came in from dispatch.  This time it was reports of a hiker who had attempted to find a short cut down the mountain.  He was attempting to get back to his car as the sun was setting, but instead of finding a short cut, he ended up stranded on a cliff face without a way of going up or down.  A team of volunteers were flown about 70 feet above the hiker where they set up technical systems and lowered a rescuer to the ledge where the hiker had cliffed out.  The rescuer placed a harness on the victim and the rest of the team raised both the rescuer and the hiker to a LZ where the hiker was flown out.  No injuries were reported.

If you'd like to see what a one-skid helicopter pick up looks like, we've uploaded two new videos.  Same pick-up, different vantage point.  Enjoy!

• One-skid helicopter pick-up:  From afar
• One-skid helicopter pick-up:  Close up

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We Fly at Night

Did you know that we are one of the very few teams that will conduct night-time rescue missions? Not only are our Officers and Volunteers ready to roll 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, but so are our Pilots. We're able to support these types of missions because of the countless hours of training and dedication that it takes to make it happen.

In the last couple of weeks, we've responded to a handful of rescue missions that have occurred at night. From a woman falling 30 feet to a pair of climbers with their ropes stuck on a multi-pitch climb, we've been on scene. Most of these rescue missions have occurred while the sun was down.

Although we're trained to respond at night, we encourage everyone to be prepared while they enjoy the outdoors. There are instances where we're unable to respond in the dark for reasons like terrain challenges or bad weather. For that reason, get outside and enjoy this gorgeous weather, but take enough food, water, and clothing to spend the night in the outdoors in a worst case scenario.

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2011 Year in Pictures

Ice climbing and winter training in Ouray, Colorado:

Mission prep at Red Rock:

Arizona Vortex in action at Red Rock:

2011 Mountain Rescue Basic's Class:

Stranded Hiker Rescue at Mt. Charleston:

Technical Operations at Red Rock:

Avalanche training Mt. Charleston:

Team extraction at Red Rock:

Red Rock Mission:

Short Haul Training:

Fastrope Training:

Dive team at Lake Mead:

Black Velvet Rescue:

Air Support and Mountain Rescue featured in the Las Vegas Weekly and the Las Vegas Sun:

(http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2011/dec/20/wild-real-life-heroes-search-and-rescue/)

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Helicopter Crash at Lake Mead

Last night, all SAR officers responded to Lake Mead after receiving reports of a helicopter crash. The Air Unit fired up the Huey along with one of the smaller Bell's to respond. Although LVMPDSAR reached the scene of the crash within 45 minutes of receiving the call, Officers confirmed that all 5 passengers had died shortly after arriving to the scene.

One of the many news stories can be found here.

LVMPDSAR sends its condolences to all affected by the crash.

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Lost Hiker at Mt. Charleston

Last Thursday, Mountain Rescue volunteers were called upon to help with the search of a lost hiker at Mt. Charleston. The hiker had ventured to the area with his dog on Wednesday with the intent of spending the night and heading back home on Thursday. However, on Thursday morning, he woke to a large accumulation of snow that had fallen during the night. Because of the storms that had rolled in and a large amount of snowfall, the hiker was unable to find the trail and chose to call for help.

In this case, it wasn't a cell phone that helped the hiker. He was carrying a device that not only communicated a gps location, but also had the ability to send messages. On Thursday, he sent his first message asking for help.

As volunteers and officer headed to the area on Thursday afternoon, they were met with very extreme weather conditions, including high winds and heavy amounts of snow. The team was unable to utilize the Unit's helicopters as a result and resorted to a plan to hike in by foot.

Just as the sun began to set, the hiker sent out a message saying that he was ok and that he and his dog were prepared to spend another night on the mountain seeing as though they had the appropriate gear to do so. Instead of sending rescue teams out in the precarious environment, it was decided that rescue operations would cease for the day and resume on Friday.

On Friday, LVMPDSAR was able to locate the stranded hiker and extract both he and his dog by helicopter. The hiker was met by his family at the SAR hangar. No injuries were reported.

Rescue teams were able to access the trail head by vehicle, but the extreme weather conditions prevented the team from accessing the hiker by helicopter.

Volunteers and officers searching for the hiker on foot.

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Busy Thanksgiving Weekend

Thanksgiving weekend is a very busy time of year for places like Red Rock Canyon, Mt. Charleston, Lake Mead, and other surrounding outdoor recreational areas. The more people that head outdoors to enjoy the 70 degree weather, the higher the potential is for rescues. This year was no exception as SAR Officers and Mountain Rescue volunteers participated in back-to-back (and sometimes simultaneous) rescues that spanned the entire Holiday weekend.

Over the course of the weekend, Rescuers responded to an ATV crash, a climber who had fallen 30 feet, and a hiker who had broken their leg. All victims were treated at the scene, extracted from their location, and delivered to waiting ambulances. Although each of these rescues were significant, the highlights of the weekend went to a 1,000ft technical rescue in Black Velvet Canyon and the rescue of 7 teenagers from rising waters near Goldstrike Canyon.

Black Velvet - Dream of Wild Turkeys Technical Rescue

On Sunday morning, November 27, at 0700 hours, we began a continuation of a rescue attempt from the previous night in Black Velvet Canyon where two females became stuck between the top of the 3rd pitch and above the 2nd pitch on Dream of Wild Turkeys (5.10a). They were located approximately 500 feet off of the valley floor and were stranded because their rope had lodged itself in a crack, making it unusable.

Pilots, Officers, and MR Volunteers attempted to access the victims on Saturday night, but due to winds, terrain, and other factors, the decision to leave them on a ledge/crack was ultimately made in order to complete the rescue in a safer and more efficient manner on Sunday. Before leaving for the night, one Officer was dropped off at the base of the cliff where voice contact was made with the climbers. It was confirmed that they were prepared to spend the remainder of the night in their current location.

On Sunday morning, Offers and Volunteers met at the parking lot located near Black Velvet where one SAR pilot met them with the Bell 500. At 0700, the team, along with gear, were flown to an area that was approximately 500 feet above the females. The ledge that the team worked from was the closest location to land since the wall was mostly vertical. A second team was placed at the base of the canyon to act as spotters and help the rescuer reach the climbers.

Once technical systems were set up, one rescuer was lowered to the females. Upon arrival, the rescuer assessed each climber and determined that both were medically sound. The rescuer was then lowered to the location of the rope. He was unable to free the rope, but was able to cut it in such a manner that a portion of it could still be used. The rescuer was then raised back to the climbers where he helped them rappell back down to the valley floor. As the climbers moved from one belay station to the next, the rescuer was lowered alongside each of them. Once all members had reached the ground, the officer and 2 climbers hiked out of the canyon.

Sauna Cave - Goldstrike Canyon Huey Extraction

On Sunday, November 27th at approximately 1830 hours, a call came in regarding 7 teenagers that were north of Gold Strike Canyon in Sauna Cave.

They were able to walk to the cave prior to the dam releasing water causing the river to rise and cover the area that they had walked.

After the water subsided, it was too dark for them to feel comfortable to walk back. Aside from being scared, one of the girls had fallen in the river and became cold causing her to not want to walk back.

One Officer and one volunteer flew from the hangar in the Huey. On their way to Goldstrike, they landed and picked up one Officer in Boulder City since it was faster for him to drive there than back to the hangar.

Once the rescue crew was on board, they flew to the Colorado River near the mouth of Gold Strike canyon using Night Vision Goggles (NVGs). The victims were located by flashlights that they had turned on.

Crews landed 100 yards downriver from them on a sandbar where one Officer and one volunteer were dropped off. After making their way to the victims and insuring that no one was injured, an extraction plan was put in place. The first group contained 4 victims while the second group consisted of 3. Although some of the members complained of being cold, all 7 victims were uninjured and safely extracted from the area.

Rescue crews weren't able to capture pictures on all of the rescues, but were able to snap some shots of the 1,000 ft. Black Velvet rescue.

This picture was taken from the ledge that the team worked from.  The rescuer was lowered from this location to the stranded climbers.

The LZ for this rescue was very tight.  Our Chief Pilot successfully deposited and extracted rescuers and gear from this location.  The Officer seen in this photo is guiding the pilot into a one-skid landing.

This is a view of the edge.  The volunteer in this photo was the edge-person who was responsible for all communication between the rescuer and system operation team.

This is a snapshot from the edge-person's point of view looking up towards technical operations.  The team managing the main-line can be seen here.  The team managing belay are located on the left side of the picture, just out of sight.

Four volunteers and two officers managed technical operations above the stranded hikers.  Here's the team in all of their glory.  The team was happy knowing that the climbers could be safely extracted, were able to survive the chilly evening on the rock, and walked away with no injuries.

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3 Stranded Hikers and an Injured Ankle

Every year, the Mountain Rescue Volunteers undergo two tests.  The first test insures that each member is sufficient in their technical rigging skills while the second is a physical test that measures each member's level of fitness.  Our goal is to be the best that we can be and these tests serve as an internal check and balance system that measures whether or not we're on our game.

This year, the team conducted these tests at Red Rock.  Normally our annual tests are predictable,  however, this year proved to be a little different.

Just as half of the team finished with the skills portion of the test, a call came in with a report of 3 hikers who were stranded near the peak of Mt. Charleston.  One of the hikers had fallen and severely injured their ankle.  As the details came in, two pilots from the Air Unit quickly flew the Huey to Red Rock to pick up one officer and two volunteers to respond to the call.

The first attempt to reach the stranded hikers proved to be extremely challenging.  Not only were they located at a high elevation, but they were in a spot that saw extremely windy conditions.  After several attempts, the winds prevailed and the initial attempt to reach the group was postponed in hopes of improved weather.  As the Huey flew the officer and volunteers back to Red Rock, it was determined that the entire team would potentially be needed to hike to the stranded hikers.

As the Huey landed at Red Rock, the Mountain Rescue team assembled and caravanned to Mt. Charleston.  It was also determined that the 500, our smaller helicopter, may be more effective in the extreme weather conditions.  Although the 3 hikers had cell phone reception and had communicated that they were preparing to spend the night, the goal of the rescue team was to get them off of the mountain before sundown.

After an approximate 2 hour delay, the 500 was able to successfully land close to the hikers, dropping off an officer to help.  In the end, 3 hikers and one dog were extracted from the mountain with the only injury being an injured ankle.  All of this was successfully accomplished before the sun set and temperatures plummeted near the peak of Mt. Charleston.

Here's the view of the trail as volunteers hiked White Rock Loop in full rescue gear.

A volunteer going through the skills test.

And the next thing you know, a call comes in.  This is a photo of the first group en route to Mt. Charleston in the Huey.  Erin, a Las Vegas Weekly reporter, came out to do a story on our Unit.  Her timing couldn't have been better as she rode along in the Huey to get a glimpse of what we do first-hand.

The 500 at Mt. Charleston just before take off.

Mountain Rescue volunteers in full gear, ready to respond.

It goes to show that there's never a dull moment!

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Overton, Red Rock, and a Reprieve from the Heat

When it comes to rescues, it's impossible to predict what's going to happen or where we'll end up next. Last week, we responded to Overton and Red Rock Canyon for separate missions. One involved an ATV crash and the other was a response to a stranded climber.

August 17th - ATV crash in Overton

Bureau of Land Management Officers were out conducting a cattle survey in the Area Northeast of Overton Beach. They conducted this survey using 4- wheeler ATV's and started around 1230 in the afternoon.

They came to an area where they had to drive up a wash area that went up approximately 60-70 feet. The first Officer made it to the top on the initial attempt. The second Officer followed suit and became stuck. After backing up and making several more attempts to make it up the hill, his wheel came off the ground and he lost balance. Unable to get off of the 4 wheeler, it rolled with the Officer several times down the hill stopping close to the bottom where it wedged against 2 scrub trees.

The Officer was wearing riding gear and a helmet, both legs were trapped underneath the 4 wheeler and he was face down. The first Officer was unable to lift the quad off his partner's legs, so he drove his quad to an area where he was able to get cell phone service and called for help. This area took approximately 1.5 hours to get to.

While his partner was getting help, the trapped Officer was able to deflate a tire and push with his freed leg to pull the other leg out.

Both subjects had run out of water, and per the details that were stated by the Officers, both were dehydrated, and one was hyperthermic.

Upon our arrival we had the first Officer go to Air 6 to be evalulated/hydrated. Our Unit helped to treat the injured atv patient who had visible minor burns on his right leg, no loss of conscious, pain to right ankle and pain in upper right quadrant and lower left quadrant. He was placed in a c-collar, back boarded, and his ankle was splinted. Some anti-nasuea medicine and water was also orally administered.

Due to the terrain, the injured Officer was hoisted approximately 60 feet into air 6. Both victims were flown to staged medical. The injured Officer was transported by mercy air to UMC, and the other Officer was transported to UMC by ground ambulance.

August 18th - Stranded Climber at Red Rock

At 1700 hours, two Officers and two Pilots were dispatched to the Calico 2 area of Red Rock Canyon referencing 3 hikers. One who was stuck on a ledge and unable to move for fear of falling 90 feet.

Upon arrival, Officers could see the 18 year old male victim in distress on a down sloping portion of a formation near the top of calico 2. One Officer was hoisted approximately 80 feet to a safe area above the victim. The victim was on a foot-wide area on a down sloping ledge that went vertical where he was located. He stated that he "couldn't feel his leg and he was going to fall." He was unable to move up or down from his position, but had wedged himself and had decent contact with the rock.

The Officer used his 30 foot 8mil rope, attached it to the victim harness and talked him through putting it on around his waist and one leg. After being secured, the Officer anchored himself and encouraged the victim to work his way toward him. Once in a safe spot, he was hoisted out and handed off to BLM and Metro Resident Officers. Air 6 then returned to collect the remaining two victims and Officer.

The victims stated they had began hiking around 2 pm, they started at sandstone and were unfamiliar with the area, ending up above calico 2 area. They said the stranded hiker had deviated from the others and had become stuck trying to work down to them.

Other than a couple of rescues here and there, we've made an attempt to take a reprieve from the heat by practicing some of our skills indoors rather than outside. In this picture, we're practicing knot passes on rappel and ascent with the help of our 6 ton crane and portable stairs.

Here's a shot of our Huey's at rest, but ready for rescue response.

Stay safe and hydrated!

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Cold Creek and Mary Jane Falls Rescues

On Sunday, August 7, two Officers responded to two different rescues:

The first rescue was a search for a man who was supposed to be hiking in Cold Creek.  Trails were searched, including Wheeler Pass without locating the man. After flying the area and feeling confident that we did not miss him, we cleared from the call pending further information and investigation by ground units. The man later turned up somewhere in town.

The second rescue of the day was at Mary Jane Falls. A 10 year old boy had fallen 12 feet and sustained a back injury. As a result of the accident, he was unable to walk.

A rescue pilot flew one officer to the scene while the second officer drove to the Mary Jane Falls trailhead.

The helicopter was able to perform a two-skid toe-in at the base of the falls and the Offcer was able to get out and begin to treat the victim. Once the second Officer arrived, he was flown to the same location along with the litter and backboard.

Nevada Division of Forestry firefighters arrived and assisted the two Officers with placing the boy on the Miller Board and into the litter. The boy was then carried back to the LZ where the helicopter was able to land and pick them up. One officer flew with the victim to the trailhead parking lot and passed the victim off to AMR for transport to UMC trauma.

The helicopter then returned to pick up the second Officer.

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Fallen Hiker at Mt. Charleston

Yesterday morning, SAR units were dispatched to an area above the Big Falls trail at Mt. Charleston in response to reports of three stranded hikers, one of which had fallen 70 feet. Two officers were initially flown in by Huey where they located one of the stranded hikers. While rescuing the hiker, they learned that one of the hikers was able to return to the parking lot on their own while the other hiker had fallen off of the cliff face in front of them after a branch that he had been hanging onto broke.

While conducting the rescue for the stranded hiker, winds in the canyon began to increase, making it difficult to use the helicopter. As a result, Mountain Rescue volunteers were called to the area to help with the hiker who had fallen.

Seven volunteers responded and joined one officer in hiking to the base of the cliff, just behind Mt. Charleston Fire Department personnel. The two officers who had helped to rescue the stranded hiker began making their way down the cliff face. The fallen hiker's body was initially discovered by fire personnel. Rescue teams estimate the actual fall to be upwards of 150 feet.

Trail to Big Falls - Hiking in

LVMPDSAR officers documented the scene and volunteers helped to extricate the fallen hiker. Because of the remote location, the body was lowered approximately 400 feet in the direction of the hiking trail that leads to Big Falls. By this time, winds had died down, so the 500 was called in to short haul the fallen hiker and rescue personnel out of the canyon.

Waiting for the 500 to arrive

500 coming in to short haul

LVMPDSAR sends its deepest condolences to family and friends of the fallen hiker.

Several local news agencies reported on the story:

• Channel 3
• Channel 5
• Channel 8
• Channel 13
• Las Vegas Review Journal

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Knee Injury at Mt. Charleston

Today, one Mountain Rescue Volunteer and two Officers responded to the Little Falls trail at Mt. Charleston. Initial reports indicated that a 39 year-old female hiker had injured her ankle and knee while hiking the trail.

Upon arrival, Fire and Ambulance Units had responded to the scene and reached the patient. In order to extract the patient, one Officer was lowered by hoist along with a litter. The Officer, along with Fire personnel, splinted the patient's knee and carried the patient about 200 yards down the trail in order to prepare for extraction. The patient was hoisted out of the canyon along with the Officer. The patient was delivered to a waiting ambulance who transported the patient to the hospital.

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ATV Safety

In the first quarter of 2011, our Unit conducted two body recoveries, both of which were ATV-related.  The simple fact is that the number of ATV-related accidents that we respond to is astounding.

Last Sunday, one Officer and three Mountain Rescue volunteers responded via Huey to a dry lake bed located near Lake Mead.  A 25-year-old female had been riding at speeds of 35-40 MPH when she attempted to make a quick turn, ultimately flying over the handle bars.  She wasn't wearing a helmet and suffered severe head and neck injuries.  As our Unit arrived, we discovered police, ambulance, and flight for life already on scene.

ATV riding is extremely popular in Southern Nevada with an abundance of recreational areas open and available for riders to enjoy.  Unfortunately, there are many riders out there who do not follow general ATV Safety guidelines.  Our Unit highly recommends that riders educate themselves on how to be safe while riding, take rider safety classes, and avoid riding in environments that are above the skill level of the rider.  The ATV Safety Institute lists the following items as the Golden Rules of ATV Riding:

1. Always wear a DOT-compliant helmet, goggles, long sleeves, long pants, over-the-ankle boots, and gloves.
2. Never ride on paved roads except to cross when done safely and permitted by law - another vehicle could hit you. ATVs are designed to be operated off-highway.
3. Never ride under the influence of alcohol or other drugs.
4. Never carry a passenger on a single-rider ATV, and no more than one passenger on an ATV specifically designed for two people.
5. Ride an ATV that's right for your age.
6. Supervise riders younger than 16; ATVs are not toys.
7. Ride only on designated trails and at a safe speed.
8. Take a hands-on ATV Course.

As mentioned before, our Unit responds to far more ATV-related accidents than we care to admit.  If riders took basic precautions, most of these accidents could be avoided.  Take the time to educate yourself today and stay safe while riding!

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Recent Rescues

Sunday, April 10th

On Sunday afternoon, two officers and two pilots responded to Calico I for an injured female with a possible broken ankle.  The helicopter was able to perform a one-skid landing, which allowed one of the Officers to exit the helicopter and make his way to the patient who was with CCFD and BLM Rangers.  She was placed in a litter, carried to the Landing Zone, and flown to the Charleston Overlook where she was transferred to medical.

On Sunday night, one pilot and one officer responded to a call in Sandy Valley to search for a suicidal subject after the subject's vehicle was located in the area.  After extensive searching, the body of the subject was found and an additional officer was called out to help with the body recovery.  The two officers were flown to the area where they collected evidence and transported the body to the Coroner.

Monday, April 11th

One pilot and two officers flew to Laughlin where a 20-year old female was hoisted off of a cliff.  She had fallen down a slope and became stuck in a spot directly above a vertical cliff.  Other than multiple abrasions, she had no significant injuries.  After providing medical care, the woman was hoisted into the Huey and transported to medical.

Tuesday, April 12th

Four officers, two pilots, and nine MR volunteers responded to Red Springs to retrieve two hikers who had became stranded on a cliff face while hiking.  As they continued to boulder up the side of the canyon, they eventually ran out of daylight and a clear trail to hike out.  Neither hiker had appropriate clothing or food, but were able to get cell phone reception from their location.  Because they were located in an area where the helicopter was unable to reach them, Rescue Personnel were flown above the hikers where technical systems were set up.  Two Rescuers were lowered to the hikers where they were retrieved and eventually lowered to the bottom of the canyon.  Neither hiker was injured.

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March Madness in Full Swing

So far, the late Winter season has been very busy for the Mountain Rescue Team. With weather reaching the 70's during the day, more people are heading outside to enjoy the recreational areas that surround Las Vegas.

On Tuesday, February 22, a 32 year-old male hiker was hiking with a group on a trail in between Calico II and Sandstone Quarry at Red Rock Canyon. While on the hike, he decided to separate from the group to be "more adventerous". At the conclusion of the hike when the hiker failed to meet the rest of the group, Search and Rescue was dispatched at about 7:00pm to help locate the missing hiker.

The Air Unit, two Officers, and five Search and Rescue volunteers responded to the call. The hiker was located and a system was set up for retrieval purposes. A Rescuer was lowered about 50 feet to the hiker, who was uninjured. After connecting the hiker to the system, the team raised the hiker and Rescuer back to the top. The hiker was ultimately flown to Sandstone Quarry where LVMPD Resident Officers were waiting with the friends of the victim.

On Saturday, March 12th, reports of a climber who had fallen in Pine Creek Canyon came in. Two volunteers and two officer's responded via air to Dark Shadow, a climb located in the area. The climber sustained a back injury after falling just above pitch two. After locating the victim and providing medical care, the team extricated the victim and delivered him to an ambulance who transported him to the trauma center.

On Tuesday morning, March 15th, Mountain Rescue volunteers were called out at about 2:00am to assist with two climbers that had become stranded on the Brownstone Wall in Juniper Canyon. Upon arrival, Rescuers discovered that the weather was very bad with high winds. Around 3:00am, a small window opened where the helicopter was able to deliver equipment and 7 rescue personnel to the top of the climb. When winds picked up again, which grounded the helicopter, the team set up technical systems and lowered the stranded climbers nearly 1,000 feet. After reaching the bottom, both Rescuers and the uninjured climbers hiked out.

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Echo Canyon Evacuation

Today, seven Mountain Rescue volunteers and four officers responded to Echo Canyon, located near the Mt. Charleston lodge. The objective of the mission was to go door-to-door to determine which residents were still in their homes, which chose to stay, and which chose to evacuate.

The reason for the voluntary evacuation was the report of multiple slides in the area along with an avalanche warning that remains in effect. Rescuers climbed through 5-6 feet of snow to check each home, ultimately taking one man to an established emergency shelter. Rescue teams also helped residents retrieve medications and other personal supplies from their homes and checked in on one man who chose to stay in his residence. The door-to-door evacuation took about four hours.

Multiple news agencies were in the area covering the story. One of the stories can be found here.

Pictures of the day's events:

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