Rescue teams respond to 4 hiker rescues in the Valley related to extreme temperatures
Rescue crews responded to at least four rescues in the Valley this weekend.
Special operations crews from Phoenix Fire utilized a big wheel operation Saturday night to assist a 30-year-old woman off of the Dobbins lookout on South Mountain.
Phoenix Fire Department said crews were called out after the woman reportedly became “too intoxicated to finish the hike,” according to her friends.
The woman was assisted onto a big wheel vehicle and lowered down the trail uninjured. She was then transported to a local hospital for further evaluation in stable condition, according to Capt. Scott Douglas, a spokesperson for Phoenix Fire Department.
According to the Scottsdale Fire Department, shortly after 9:20 a.m. on Saturday several rescue teams used a UTV vehicle to rescue a woman in her sixties who was suffering from heat exhaustion and around 11 a.m. located and rescued a woman in her twenties on foot, who was also affected by heat exhaustion.
Around 11:50 a.m., authorities said that they were notified of a 59-year-old suffering from heat stroke symptoms. Police said that the man was hiking in a steep area at the top of Sunset Trail, and were forced to to preform a hoist operation using a helicopter to save him.
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"We made that decision because he was actually moving towards heatstroke. He was in and out of consciousness. He was you know, rapid, weak heart, you know, pulse, he had stopped sweating, core temperature was 103," Scottsdale Fire Department PIO David Folio said.
According to Folio, the woman in her sixties received medical attention while the woman in her twenties refused any treatment from medics before leaving the scene. Folio said that the third hiker received advanced life support treatment and was transported to a hospital.
All three are expected to be okay, authorities said.
Folio noted that although it is unusual to see three rescue operations in one day, he was not altogether surprised.
To avoid heat exhaustion, Folio recommended that hikers hydrate before hitting the trails and bring sunscreen, comfortable clothing and a fully charged cell phone. Hikers should also turn around after they drink halfway through their water, stay on the trail and stay mindful of their limits, Folio said.
Reach the reporter Jeremy Yurow at Jyurow@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Rescue teams respond to 4 heat related hiker rescues in the Valley
