You are here

Grand Canyon National Park Rangers Kept Busy With Medical Emergencies

Share
Alternate Text
As beautiful as the Inner Gorge of Grand Canyon National Park is, it can be a dangerous place, too/NPS, Mark Lellouch

Many of us are awestruck by the beauty and grandeur of Grand Canyon National Park, but enjoying that landscape comes with the caveat that it can be a dangerous place if you're not careful or simply unlucky. A recent day in the life of Grand Canyon rangers drives that message home.

September 24 was a particularly busy day for rangers, as seven people were evacuated from the canyon via helicopter in seven separate incidents:

* A 53-year-old woman on a private river trip with cardiac problems was evacuated from the National Canyon area.

* A 69-year-old woman on a commercial river trip who'™d suffered a femur fracture was short-hauled via helicopter from Havasu Creek to a landing zone near the Colorado River for evacuation to the South Rim.

* A 33-year-old man from a private river trip was evacuated from the mouth of Havasu Creek after suffering a serious laceration in the groin area.

* A 43-year-old female backpacker with an acute abdomen (appendicitis) was evacuated from Phantom Ranch.

* A 29-year-old man with cardiac issues was extracted from the North Rim developed area.

* A 52-year-old male backpacker with a leg injury was evacuated from the Nankoweap area.

* A 51-year-old woman on a commercial river trip with a knee injury was evacuated from the Nankoweap area.

In addition to the medevacs, there were several other incidents, including:

* A flipped and stuck raft below Crystal Rapids that necessitated four rangers and two sling loads of equipment flown in to begin a two-day recovery operation;

* A warrant/intoxication arrest in the South Rim developed area;

* An intoxicated and possibly suicidal person approximately a mile and a half down the Bright Angel Trail; and

* A hyponatremic 65-year-old woman treated and transported via NPS ambulance from the South Rim after attempting to hike rim to rim in a day.

Add comment

CAPTCHA

This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

Image CAPTCHA
Enter the characters shown in the image.

The Essential RVing Guide

The Essential RVing Guide to the National Parks

The National Parks RVing Guide, aka the Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks, is the definitive guide for RVers seeking information on campgrounds in the National Park System where they can park their rigs. It's available for free for both iPhones and Android models.

This app is packed with RVing specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 parks.

You'll also find stories about RVing in the parks, some tips if you've just recently turned into an RVer, and some planning suggestions. A bonus that wasn't in the previous eBook or PDF versions of this guide are feeds of Traveler content: you'll find our latest stories as well as our most recent podcasts just a click away.

So whether you have an iPhone or an Android, download this app and start exploring the campgrounds in the National Park System where you can park your rig.