JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. — Sublette County’s Tip Top Search and Rescue has been busy since the calendar turned the page to July.
Rescue Mission #06 July 1
Tip Top SAR was notified via Inreach device of a fellow hiker near Twin Lakes in the Bridger-Teton National Forest, near Big Sandy, that was unable to continue the hike out due to severe abdominal pain. The male showed symptoms of needing immediate medical care.
Tip Top SAR was given permission by Bridger-Teton Interagency to access the man via the leased helicopter to expedite the extrication. The male was flown directly to the Pinedale Medical Clinic for evaluation by ER staff.
Rescue Mission #07 July 6
Sublette County Dispatch was contacted by Fremont County for an agency assist is helping an injured hiker on the east side of Gannett Peak. The man was injured from a fall in a boulder field as he began an ascent of Gannett Peak. The male used an Inreach device to notify authorities he was needing medical assistance and evacuation.
Due to the elevation where the man was resting, 10,200-ft, Fremont County was unable to quickly get to the injured. Top SAR members were paged to fly to the coordinates and plans had been arranged for the man to be flown directly to the Lander airport where he was taken to the Lander Hospital for further care.
Due to the rocky and tree-filled terrain, Tip Top SAR unloaded two members in Wilson Meadows to walk upstream to the coordinates given. Upon arrival at the injured party, the bleeding had been controlled and injuries bandaged by fellow hikers. The man was able to walk downstream with assistance to the awaiting helicopter for extrication.
During this walk out, a second request for help came into Sublette County Dispatch via cellphone requesting help getting an injured climber off the backside of Wolfs Head Peak within the Cirque of Towers. After refueling in Lander, the helicopter and SAR team directly flew to the coordinates passed along from Dispatch and the International Emergency Response Coordination Center in Houston, Texas.
Rescue Mission #08 July 6
Responding to the climber who had fallen after an earlier summit of Wolfs Head Peak, information was gathered from the reporting party that the climber had fallen approximately 50 ft., coming to rest on a small ledge. The man relayed to his partner above he had suffered two broken legs, as well as a fractured wrist, and facial injuries.
After a recon flight to locate the injured party high above the valley floor, Tip Top SAR members rigged the helicopter for short haul operations on the valley floor then inserted a member on a fixed line under the helicopter directly on the same ledge as the injured.
Due to the limited space for a full immobilization of the injuries, the man was placed in a suit for rapid extrication and both rescuer and climber were flown back to the valley floor were other members awaited to evaluate and prepare climber for extrication inside the helicopter. He was placed in a vacuum mattress for immobilization and flown to the Pinedale Medical Clinic where he was stabilized then flown by Air Med to University of Utah’s Trauma 1 hospital.
The uninjured climbing partner was assisted down the mountain by fellow hikers as he was without some of the necessary ropes and gear to safely descend to his camp.
