King County Search and Rescue crews responded to a call for an injured hiker near Mason Lake on Saturday afternoon, June 17, 2017. Mason Lake is located off I-90 exit 45 near Snoqualmie Pass.
According to the King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO), the man suffered critical injuries while hiking. It was originally expected that a helicopter would evacuate him from the area, but due to foggy weather conditions, the hoist rescue was canceled.
Instead, SAR [volunteer] crews, hiked in and located the man around 6:30PM – and then spent the overnight hours hiking the man down the trail.
The mission took 17-hours in total, which were spent locating, stabilizing and then 12 hours carrying out the injured man. KCSAR Volunteer PIO Alan LaBissoniere said the man suffered two broken legs. Over 60 SAR crew members responded for the mission. Members of Bellevue Medic one also made the hike to provide medical treatment during the long trip out.
After crews got the man to the trailhead Sunday morning, he was transported to Harborview Medical Center for the treatment of injuries KCSO described as “life threatening.”
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Enough praise and gratefulness cannot express how fortunate the visitors of Snoqualmie Valley and surrounding area are to have Eastside Search and Rescue, this group of dedicated individuals who do this! We owe them a huge thanks!