A hiker stranded on Shaw Butte for nearly 24 hours was rescued by Phoenix Fire Fighters PHOENIX (3TV / CBS 5) – An injured hiker was rescued outside Shaw Butte in Phoenix Thursday after being stuck there for nearly 24 hours. And he might not have been found at all if someone in a nearby residential complex hadn’t heard his cries for help. They found the 34-year-old man about 3/4 of the way up the mountain in steep terrain. He had a lower leg injury and was unable to leave the mountain on his own. The hiker said he had been stuck in the same spot since Wednesday noon, then the water ran out around 5 p.m. He also had no cell phone service. In the end, he spent the whole night on the mountain. But it turned out that there was an apartment complex a few hundred meters away, and there someone heard the hiker’s cries for help. “He could scream and someone overheard them and call 911 and say there was someone injured on the mountain,” said Captain David Ramirez of the Phoenix Fire Department. When the technical rescue workers reached the hiker, they decided the safest way to get him down was to fly him from the steep mountain slope in a helicopter in a “hoist operation”. Phoenix firefighters rescue hikers off North Mountain after being stuck there for almost 24 hours. (Source: Phoenix Fire Dept.) “We actually put the patient in a screaming suit and were able to lift him off the mountain,” said Ramirez. (A “screamer suit” is an easy-to-wear harness that is designed for quick release by hoists and keeps the person secure while lifting.) Ramirez says the crews successfully got the hiker to the ground where he was stabilized and then taken to the hospital. According to the fire department, he was dehydrated and had a leg injury, but was in a stable condition. “Good luck, great luck being without water for hours in this heat,” says Ramirez. He advises that every time you go hiking, you should make sure someone knows where you are and that you have enough water and cell phone power. Copyright 2021 KPHO / KTVK (KPHO Rundfunkgesellschaft). All rights reserved.
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