JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. — Teton County Search & Rescue volunteers had a busy July 4 weekend, which unfortunately ended with tragedy on the Snake River.
The flurry of activity corresponds with a rather busy June for TCSAR volunteers. Since the beginning of June, TCSAR has responded to 12 calls for service. Ten have occurred in the last 13 days.
In these busy two weeks, the team responded to two river fatalities, and multiple patients with severe injuries. They are hikers, mountain bikers, horseback riders, off-road motorists, river rafters and recreationalists. They range in age from early 20s to late 80s, and include locals as well as visitors. While summer is always busy on the SAR front, these past few weeks have been especially so.
TCSAR volunteers are fully aware of how and why people want to enjoy the great outdoor opportunities in Teton County. They understand that accidents can and do happen, and they stand ever ready to respond no matter the circumstance and without judgment.
The team also advocates for preparedness, and encourages everyone to think of and plan for the consequences of their decisions.
Hangar report
The latest busy stretch started on Thursday evening, June 30, when TCSAR was called to respond to a UTV accident in the Crescent H area. A man had rolled his off-road vehicle and become trapped inside with significant lower leg injuries.
Volunteers arrived on scene via the RZR side-by-side. They packaged the man up and transported him in the RZR down the mountain to a waiting ambulance, completing the mission in 2 hours, 28 minutes.
On Saturday, July 2, TCSAR was alerted about an injured hiker north of Pacific Creek. A woman in her 60s had fallen while attempting to cross a creek in the Whetstone Mountain area. She experienced significant pain in her leg and was unable to walk. It was later learned that she had a broken femur.
To alert first responders, the woman’s companion hiked out three miles to place a 911 call. A Teton County Sheriff Deputy responded to the trailhead, while TCSAR requested the interagency helicopter from the US Forest Service. The helicopter was fighting the Sandy Fire, but was released to respond to this incident. The helicopter picked up two TCSAR volunteers and flew to the scene of the accident.
Meanwhile, a ground team from TCSAR dispatched to the trailhead as backup. The helicopter team was able to find the patient, assess her injuries, and transport her out of the backcountry to a waiting ambulance, completing the callout in 4 hours, 36 minutes.
Just after 2pm on July 4, Teton County dispatch received a 911 call regarding a young woman who had been injured in an ATV accident on Shadow Mountain. The woman was complaining of severe pain in her shoulder. Dispatch paged TCSAR to respond. Volunteers drove to the site in a truck with the RZR on the trailer.
On scene, volunteers packaged the patient for transport via wheeled litter to a waiting ambulance at the trailhead, completing the mission in just under 3 hours.
As that mission was wrapping up, TCSAR was paged to respond to a river accident at King’s Wave on the Snake River. A young man had been floating in an innertube with friends when he flipped and could not get back to his group. Other paddlers then spotted him in the river unresponsive.
TCSAR responded with teams in the jet boat and truck. The jet boat was able to access the scene with medical personnel. That team loaded the patient into the jet boat for transport to an ambulance at Lewis Landing. The man did not survive the incident.
