On Monday, January 16, a female hiker went through a terrifying situation.
The experienced hiker had been climbing up Mount Baldy with her brother in San Bernardino County, California, when suddenly, she slipped down the Devil's Backbone Trail.
In total, she slid down 50 feet before she was able to jam her ice axe into the mountain and hold on for dear life.
Captain Paramedic Eric Spies and a helicopter rescue crew from the San Bernardino County Fire Department were contacted by her brother. They recorded their daring attempt at rescuing the poor woman.
The conditions were extremely dangerous. The team's pilot had trouble keeping the chopper steady while hard wind gusts were in the way.
Eric, harnessed to the chopper, leapt off and landed near the woman, told her to remove her backpack and to "hug me as tight as you can," as told by Eric in the video below.
One wrong move, and the rescue could have ended in disaster.
"If I allow the helicopter to move and it pulls him off of her, and she’s not secured, it could potentially cause her to fall,” said the pilot. There was nothing below her but a hundred-foot fall onto sharp rocks.
Luckily, the rescue was a success, and both Eric and the woman were lifted off the mountain and into the chopper.
"She was very thankful for what we were able to do for her," Eric said.
Please SHARE this rescue video!
