Bystanders ‘dropped everything’ for man who fell going down Mt. Whitney in California
With the help of bystanders “who dropped everything,” a man was rescued after he fell while descending Mt. Whitney, a California nonprofit says.
The mountaineer was on a solo trek on Labor Day “when a bystander watched him fall in the chute,” Inyo County Search and Rescue said in a Sept. 6 Facebook post.
As a result of his head injuries, the man fell unconscious, rescuers said.
After getting a call about the injured man on Mountaineers’ Route at about 4 p.m., rescuers sent seven volunteers “to the airport in Lone Pine.”
A California Highway Patrol helicopter flew one volunteer to the area, and she was lowered to the ground, rescuers said.
By this time, seven good Samaritans from three separate groups had “dropped everything they were doing to help this solo mountaineer,” rescuers said.
The good Samaritans, three of whom by chance were mountain guides, “gave him their sleeping bags and used their skills as Wilderness First Responders to evaluate and monitor his status,” according to rescuers.
The helicopter crew left the area after rescuers decided “it was too risky to hoist” the man off the mountain with the wind’s unpredictability.
Given the late hour, rescuers returned to Apple Valley to swap out crews.
“Meanwhile on the mountain,” the good Samaritans worked alongside the rescuer to “lower the patient down the steep slope” using ropes, according to the nonprofit.
Slowly, they then carried the man “to a landing zone near Iceberg Lake,” rescuers said.
The CHP helicopter returned just after midnight, managing “to land despite still gusty winds,” and hoisted the man and rescuer off the mountain, rescuers said.
After arriving at the airport, rescuers said the man was taken to a hospital by air ambulance “for further treatment.”
“We wish him a speedy and full recovery,” the nonprofit said.
Rescuers went on to commend the good Samaritans.
“You quite possibly saved his life and the rescue would have never gone this smoothly without you,” the rescue nonprofit said.
Rescuers urged visitors to always wear a helmet when “you are in steep terrain with fall and/or rockfall danger,” such as along Mountaineers’ Route.
The 8.8-mile out-and-back route is “considered a highly challenging route,” according to the hiking website AllTrails.
“It should only be attempted by experienced adventurers,” AllTrails says.
This story was originally published September 6, 2024 at 3:06 PM with the headline "Bystanders ‘dropped everything’ for man who fell going down Mt. Whitney in California."
