Coast Guard Rescues Two from Icy Washington Mountain
The U.S. Coast Guard evacuated an injured woman and a 16-year-old boy from Mount Ellinor in Washington's Olympic Mountains. The two had slipped and fallen in an icy avalanche chute. The rescue highlights the persistent dangers of mountain adventures during winter conditions.
- The 51-year-old woman, identified as a local junior high school teacher, suffered abdominal injuries from a fall in an icy avalanche chute along the mountain's winter route. The 16-year-old boy injured his knee while trying to assist her. - The rescue was a multi-agency effort that lasted approximately eight hours, starting when the initial call was dispatched at around 1:15 p.m. and concluding after the successful hoist at 9:30 p.m. - An initial helicopter rescue attempt by the King County Sheriff's Office Guardian One aircraft had to be aborted due to dangerous weather conditions. - A U.S. Coast Guard MH-60T Jayhawk helicopter crew from Air Station Astoria in Oregon was ultimately able to conduct the hoist rescue. The crew hovered by the cliff face for about three hours to complete the complex operation. - Ground teams from the Mason County Special Operations Team, Mason County Search & Rescue, and the volunteer-run Olympic Mountain Rescue were on the scene but could not safely evacuate the injured hikers on foot due to the steep and unstable terrain. - Following the airlift, the two hikers were transported to Olympia Regional Airport, where they were met by the Tumwater Fire Department and Thurston County Medic One for medical assessment before being taken to a hospital with minor injuries. - The winter route on Mount Ellinor is known to be hazardous, with the Washington Trails Association warning that it requires experience with snow navigation, avalanche safety knowledge, and specialized gear like ice axes.
