KOOTENAI COUNTY, IDAHO — Firefighters from the Timberlake Fire Protection District faced a different type of obstacle Saturday when they were called to rescue an injured person.
They had to hike 4.5 miles up a remote mountain trail to reach the person who had fallen and sustained a possible broken femur.
The location was so remote; crews didn’t have the option of using a vehicle or ATV. It took them three hours of hiking to reach the person.
Timberlake Fire said it recognized that removing the patient from the area on the ground would be extremely difficult and take a lot of time. It requested the Spokane County Sheriff’s helicopter, Rescue 3, to aid in the rescue.
Ground crews arrived simultaneously with the helicopter team. The patient was assessed, treated, and then “packaged” for transport. The patient was then hoisted into the helicopter and taken to a nearby hospital.
Timberlake Fire said the operation required a 9-mile round-trip hike with approximately7,000 feet of elevation gain and loss.
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