At approximately 1515 hours the Team was called to assist a 29-year-old female hiker with reported symptoms of Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) near the lower end of the East Couloir on Matterhorn Peak. The Team responded to the Bridgeport airport, and air resources were requested. Lemoore Naval Air Station did not have immediate crew and equipment availabilty, but CHP H40 was contacted, and they were able to accept the mission.
CHP H40 arriving at Bridgeport International Airport. Image by J. Bush
As the field teams assembled gear in preparation of hike up to the 11,100 foot level on Matterhorn Peak, H40 arrived at the airport. Extraneous gear was offloaded due to the high elevation, and the crew of 3 was able to hoist the subject into the aircraft and deliver her to Bridgeport airport. Her hiking partner remained to gather gear from their camp, and planned to finish his descent the following day.
Pre-Rescue briefing. Image by J. Bush
The operation terminated at 1837 hours.
IC: Way Ops Leader: Bush Responders: Anderson, Beck, Creager, Cucura, Hartstrom, Torrence.