Crossposted from the KCSO newsletter

On Wednesday, Aug. 2, the King County Sheriff’s Office Communications Center received a call from the Yakima County Sheriff’s Office. They had received an alert from a Garmin inReach device – a personal satellite transmitter/receiver – about an injured hiker on the Pacific Crest Trail near Mt. Adams.

Pilot Deputy Josh Sweeney, Co-Pilot Tony Mullinax, Safety Officer Sergeant Eric Gagnon, Rescue Specialists Deputy Travis Brunner and Sergeant Tim Lewis, and King County Medic Rosenblum responded immediately. Guardian 2 was on its way to the hikers’ location within two hours, and they captured some fantastic views along the way.

The Air Support Unit (ASU) team swiftly located the hiker, who had been making their way from Southern California toward Canada before getting injured. They were transported to the Yakima Airport where AMR was waiting to transport the patient, whose injuries were more severe than originally thought.

This mission saved hours of work for volunteers and helped get a community member to care more quickly than if it’d been a ground rescue. The team did a fantastic job thinking on their feet and solving problems as always. Fantastic work by everyone involved!