By Aidan Mortensen | KOAL News | Photo courtesy of the Emery County Sheriff’s Office
A busy stretch for the Emery County Search and Rescue team continued on Saturday, May 9, as the SAR was deployed to the Buckeyes Canyon area of the San Rafael Swell to rescue a 33-year-old man and his dog who had fallen while rappelling.
According to the victim’s wife, the pair was rappelling in the area when, as he began his descent, the bag anchor system reportedly failed, causing him to fall backward over the cliff and land at the bottom near his wife, sustaining injuries to his wrist and ankle.
Authorities were first alerted to the incident when dispatch received a text to 911 reporting it, and the SAR team was immediately deployed. While the team was en route, dispatch also contacted Classic Air Medical, with Sheriff Tyson Huntington contacting the Utah Department of Public Safety helicopter for assistance.
Upon their arrival at the scene, the SAR team was joined by representatives from Goblin Valley State Park, Green River State Park, and Utah State Parks and Recreation. When the helicopters arrived, Classic Air Medical advised that due to the hazardous terrain, they would be unable to land safely. When the DPS helicopter arrived, the group began developing a rescue plan.
“DPS personnel were able to fly into the area and lower an officer down on a hoist, successfully extracting the patient from the canyon,” reads a statement from Sheriff Huntington. “After the patient was removed, the DPS helicopter returned to extract the patient’s wife and dog. Once the patient was transported back to incident command, he was transferred to Classic Air Medical and flown to a hospital on the Wasatch Front for further treatment.”
In addition to the humans saved, the SAR team also rescued a poodle that was strapped to a harness worn by the man, sustaining minor injuries to one of its legs. Authorities said the animal “appears to be doing well.”
Closing his statement, the Sheriff shared,” Search and Rescue Commander Lee Magnuson would like to thank everyone involved for their teamwork and efforts in making this a successful rescue operation.”