Exhausted hikers airlifted from Phoenix-area mountain trail
Feb 14, 2018, 12:47 PM
(Screenshot)
PHOENIX — Three hikers stranded in mountains east of Phoenix overnight were carried to safety by a rescue helicopter Wednesday morning, authorities said.
The group had been stuck at Siphon Draw trail in the Superstition Mountains in Apache Junction.
Two of the hikers, in their 70s, were suffering from exhaustion and couldn’t walk on their own. A third was able to walk alone.
A Facebook post from the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office said the call for help came Tuesday evening. By the time rescuers reached them, it was too dark to attempt an extraction.
Instead, volunteers with the Central Arizona Mountain Rescue Association were dropped in and they stayed with the trio through the night.
At daybreak, the Department of Public Safety sent a helicopter. Superstition Fire Department staff were also on hand.