Authorities say a Florida woman broke her leg while hiking in Juneau Tuesday and was rescued by helicopter.
Capital City Fire and Rescue Chief Richard Etheridge said in a phone interview that CCFR was dispatched to West Glacier Trail at about 2:15 p.m.
An Alaska State Trooper was already there with a jet skiff and took the first responders out to the site to locate the woman, Etheridge said.
Etheridge said they found her about 400 feet up on the hillside.
Responders realized it would be too difficult to do a rope rescue, and troopers called for a Temsco Helicopter to safely extract her from the rocks.
Etheridge said the helicopter landed on the rocks, airlifted the patient out and then landed in the parking lot near the trailhead. She was taken to Bartlett Regional Hospital for treatment of her injuries.
Etheridge said the rescue took about three hours to complete, and everyone was home by 5 p.m.
Troopers identified the woman as 27-year-old Kristen Walling of Florida.
During the rescue, responders also simultaneously helped guide a lost hiker back to the trail.
The hiker, identified as 50-year-old Scott Frymire of British Columbia, called to say he was lost. Troopers guided him back via cell phone, and he arrived in the parking lot at the same time the helicopter was rescuing Walling. Troopers said in a dispatch Frymire did not report any injuries.
• Contact reporter Emily Russo Miller or at 523-2263 at emily.miller@juneauempire.com.
Comments (10)
Add commentGuess they got an Alaskan
Guess they got an Alaskan experience...
Just stay on the trail. Glad
Just stay on the trail. Glad all is O.K. though.
more signs
I hike West Glacier about 4 to 5 times a week and there have been many many times I have redirected folks back to the trail as they headed out one of the side trails or goat paths or told them which way to go to get to the glacier. The USFS need to mark the trails better.
Lord love a duck! I've walked
Lord love a duck! I've walked this trail at least 4 or 5 times in my life, and being accustomed to walking on earth daily it is no effort to 'read the signs' (tracking) and know your way, but this also comes with Alaskan Wisdom involving 'be aware of where you tread' so you don't die on a slip of ice - tourists, bless their souls, rarely stare at their toes.
That visitors regularly become lost here speaks to me that the future of this trail is to be paved, with lanes of travel and arrows as that is the only surety of orientation for many pedestrians and heaven knows we lose too many tourists every year because of their own lack of survival skills, awareness, and preparations. See Mendenhall Visitor Center development over its history to realize the infratructures being built to maintain 'preserved natural wilderness' for the ever-loving flow of humanity that want to dance with wolves and kiss the face of a glacier.
Maybe adding curbs and rumble strips would keep them mindful of the peril involved when leaving the roadway. Until then, I applaud efforts which keep trails maintained and enjoyable, I know ditchdigging can be hard and often thankless labor. It's just not possible to keep all the people out of trouble all the time, but don't let that stop you from trying. Smile.
what visitors regulary become lost?
I see way more locals losing their dogs and getting lost or injured than I've seen of visitors doing the same.
Almost daily we see people with "Alaska Wisdom" killing themselves and others in completely avoidable crashes. I guess granger's "Alaska Wisdom" is completely devoid of knowledge on how to operate a vehicle safely.
Inexperience
You can't fault the Florida woman, she'd probably never seen any land more vertical than a sand dune.
All it takes
Is the "Look something shiny" moment and they are off!
Do the Wrong Thing
Uh, please do not confabulate my good humored observation with operation of motorized vehicles, Do Tha Wrong Thang. To be clear for those without wit, I am saying that people who rarely walk off pavement need extra safety boundaries to keep them from harming themselves when interacting with unfamiliar 'wilderness' - like the west glacier trail which is reclaimed from miners who worked the land 100 years ago, and the 50+ year old junk yard adjacent in the brush. The trees overgrew the roadways and now common folk are uncertain how to navigate a less than freeway speed traveled trail. *rimshot* It'll be a concrete parking lot with paved trails in around 20 years I expect, Goddess willing. Unless we turn our back on tourism and suddenly decide we don't want more visitors - or the vistor industry decides it is perilous to continue operating here.
Drive safely citizen. And dog owners, please be mindful many humans have personal lifelong grudges against your pet and to never let fido out of your control - as impossible a task it may seem.
After thinking about it, she
After thinking about it, she may have had a cell phone glued to her head. Or even texting. I have had people walk into me while standing still, too caught up in texting.
Good Question though...
Please do some homework for yourself and others Do The White Thing. We have report of one lost two days ago, thats a place to start. Empire archives might help you expand your education to count the numbers of individuals who are lost, rescued, and their tales, on this trail annually. Also asking the local rescue groups about their experiences would maybe fill out your lack of information. Respond back to us and make the comment section proud to have readers who perform better than the staff writers.