A hiker descending Golden Horn, a peak in the Ice Lakes Basin west of Silverton, fell down a 50-foot cliff, prompting a search and rescue operation and a helicopter evacuation.
According to a news release, the San Juan County sheriff was alerted of the injured hiker at 11:42 a.m. Tuesday, who promptly notified Silverton Medical Rescue.
The team deployed six team members to the Ice Lakes Trailhead. Though the area was socked in by rain clouds, a small weather window allowed a Flight For Life helicopter to insert several team members into the upper Ice Lakes Basin. The advance team made its way to the patient to stabilize him while the rest of the team made its way up the trail.
La Plata County Search and Rescue was brought in to assist with the evacuation, while another team from San Miguel Search and Rescue was staged as a contingency. Responders packaged the patient and moved him back to the helicopter landing zone, where he was later flown to a nearby hospital.
According to a news release, Silverton Medical Rescue could have gotten to the injured hiker faster if he had used an emergency satellite communication device instead of his phone’s SOS feature.
“While iPhone satellite capabilities are improving connectivity, we urge backcountry users to consider a two-way satellite emergency communication device, such as a Garmin Inreach,” the release said. “Smartphone emergency satellite options are not always reliable, and this delay significantly slows the flow of critical information during a time-sensitive response.”
Once the hiker was safely evacuated, a major part of the team’s debrief was about how they could have responded faster if the hiker had a satellite communication device, said spokesperson DeAnne Gallegos.
“Garmin and other SOS satellite emergency device companies are designed to handle communication with backcountry search and rescue,” she said.
Gallegos said customer service specialists who handle iPhone SOS notifications deal with all the people who use it, not just backcountry travelers, which can delay the response time for backcountry search and rescuers in an emergency.
“iPhone’s customer service is dealing with me and you and the guy down the street and people all over the country,” Gallegos said. “Their customer service is more designed for laymen and easy emergencies, like a flat tire, so our search and rescue team does not get direct access to you if you use that service.”
Gallegos said using a smartphone in this type of emergency can delay backcountry search and rescue responses by 40 minutes. For that reason, Silverton Medical Rescue encourages people who recreate in the backcountry to carry a separate satellite communication device for emergency use, not just their phone.
sedmondson@durangoherald.com
