3 Hikers Rescued By MD State Police Helicopter Crew

MARYLAND — A Maryland State Police helicopter crew rescued three hikers, two of whom were injured, in two separate missions Sunday from the woods of Tucker County, West Virginia.

According to a police news release, the first rescue call came shortly after 7:45 a.m. Sunday to perform an aerial rescue for an injured hiker and his teenage son. The pair had been out in the woods in Tucker County, West Virginia, since Saturday, when the father was hurt. Trooper 5, based out of the Cumberland Section, was requested for the aerial rescue because of the terrain difficulties and the nature of the father’s injuries.

Once overhead, the 49-year-old injured hiker, and his 13-year-old son, were located along the Red Creek Trail in Dolly Sods along the river. The pilots hovered 170-foot above the terrain, while a state trooper/flight paramedic was lowered to the ground. The injured man was then hoisted into the helicopter while the trooper remained on the ground until the patient’s son was also hoisted into the helicopter.

The adult patient was taken to the J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia, for treatment.

The second rescue occurred in the same region about 2:50 p.m. Sunday. The Maryland State Police helicopter was returning from the previous mission when another hoist rescue request was made.

The injured hiker, a 55-year-old man, was located alongside the Red Creek Trail in Dolly Sods adjacent to the river’s edge. The pilots maneuvered hovered 150-foot above the site, while a state trooper/flight paramedic was lowered below. With help from rescuers with the Harman, Canaan, Davis, and Whitmer (West Virginia) fire companies, the victim was secured in a patient extrication platform.

Once the injured man was hoisted inside the helicopter, he was taken to the J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital for treatment.