Recruitment is OPEN!

It's official.  We have opened recruitment and are in search of anyone who may be interested in volunteering for our Mountain Rescue Team!  Visit our Volunteer page for more information and to fill out an interest form.  The cut-off date to be considered for our 2013 Basic's Class is Friday, Nov. 16th, 2012.

Read more »

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!

Read more »

First Annual Hot Air Balloon Festival

We are proud to announce that our Unit is taking fundraising to a whole new level! This year we will be hosting the First Annual Hot Air Balloon Festival to take place Nov 2-4. Mark your calendars and don't miss this amazing event! http://lasvegasballoonfest.com/

Read more »

Exciting New Event

For the past year, our Volunteer team has been working on a new event for the Las Vegas Valley. The goal was to not only bring something new and exciting to the local community, but to also raise awareness about the environment that surrounds this bright city along with the safety education that is needed to enjoy the outdoors.

Stay tuned for more information. In the meantime, here's a little hint:

Read more »

Epinephrine All-Nighter

On July 3rd at around 8am, two climbers visiting from Ohio made the approach to the base of Epinephrine, a 5.9 route located in Black Velvet Canyon that consists of 15 pitches.  They carried the climbing equipment that they needed for the day along with 5 liters of water and began their ascent.  As the day progressed, they lost the route on several occasions and consumed their last bit of water at 4pm.  As the sun set, they began coming to the realization that they may be in trouble.  By 11pm, they knew that they needed help.  They eventually found a ledge where they were able to get cell phone reception and made the call.

At 12:30am on the 4th, our Unit received the call and 5 Officers were immediately dispatched to the area.  While they assessed the situation, it was determined that a technical rescue was needed.  Volunteers received the call at 2:30am and met at the Cottonwood parking lot.  Officers began setting up systems while the Volunteers were en route.

As volunteers arrived, they boarded the helicopter and were flown to Black Velvet Peak.

One Officer was immediately lowered to the Climbers, which were on a ledge approximately 400 feet below the peak.  After an initial assessment was conducted, one Volunteer was also lowered to help in recovering the two stranded climbers.  Over the course of the next 5 hours, both Climbers were raised back to the peak.  At one point, sleet came down on the team followed by heavy rain.

The Haul team hard at work raising the last Rescuer to the peak:

Edge team managing belay and main-line friction:

The sun rising over Black Velvet Canyon:

Both climbers were safely delivered to their vehicle and learned that 5 liters of water just wasn't enough and that route planning is crucial, especially in an unfamiliar environment.

They did, however, do a couple of things right.  They told people where they were going and when they found that they were in trouble, they stayed put and called for help.  Even if they weren't able to get cell reception, their friends knew that they were overdue, knew where they were, and would have been able to call for help on their behalf.

We're always happy to have a positive outcome!  Stay safe out there!

Read more »

Dehydrated on Mt. Charleston

Last Saturday, June 30th, two Officers and two Volunteers responded to reports of a 65 year old woman who was hiking the North Loop Trail at Mt. Charleston and was no longer able to continue hiking.  Upon arrival, Rescuers found that after summiting, the woman became extremely exhausted and began showing signs of dehydration.  After receiving medical attention on scene, the woman was extracted via helicopter and transferred to an awaiting ambulance.

While on the rescue, a Bystander captured the following shots of our team in action and shared them with us on our Facebook page.  We love it when people send us pictures of our missions!

First Rescuer being lowered to the trail:

Second Rescuer on their way down with the litter:

Wrapping up the rescue as the sun was setting:

Photo credits:  Lois Mills

Read more »

Two Ships in Flight

On Saturday, our Mountain Rescue Unit experienced a very busy day at Red Rock.  Not only did we have training, but at one point, our Air Unit helped us with simultaneous missions.  One was the search for a woman and her son who lost their way near Turtle Head Peak.  The other was a body recovery near Jean.

Here's a site that isn't seen very often.  One of our 500's and the Huey flying back to Vegas side-by-side:



It's getting hot out there, so don't forget to pack extra water!

Read more »