KING COUNTY, Wash. — A 21-year-old woman was rescued from the Mailbox Peak Trail near North Bend Wednesday night after she slipped on a rock and broke her femur.
About 20 King County Search and Rescue volunteers responded to a 911 call that came from the injured hiker’s companion.
Search and rescue crews were told the hiker fell about 1.8 miles from the trailhead, about 1,800 feet up the mountain.
It took about three hours to reach the hiker, stabilize her badly fractured leg, and bring her to an ambulance.
Mailbox Peak is a challenging 4.5-mile climb to 4,000 feet, and search and rescue volunteers average about 20 rescues a year on the trail.
On Feb. 4, a hiker rushed to get down the peak before dark, got lost in deep snow, and it took hours to find her. Rescue crews say in Wednesday’s case, volunteers believe the hikers were running to beat darkness.
“They were coming down, probably rushing the night, moving too quickly, (that's) probably how her injury happened," said Alan Labissoniere of King County Search and Rescue.
"Seems like this mission went very well for us. The injuries weren't the best case, but we were able to get her down very quickly, get her to the hospital very fast."
Cox Media Group
