A search and rescue team from Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington, recovered a 55-year-old female hiker suffering from a heat-related issue on Saturday.
The rescue is one of more than 30 missions Naval Air Station Whidbey Island’s search and rescue team has completed this year — including nine medical evacuations and 19 rescues.
The rescue team found the hiker and her group on a slope of Mount Hermann, and team members were deployed approximately 30 meters up the trail.
“After preparing the patient for transport and repositioning to a spot for a clearer hoist, the SAR crew hoisted the patient aboard the helicopter and began rendering patient care,” a Navy news release said. “The patient was transported to St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham, Wash. a few minutes after 4 p.m.”
Last month, the search and rescue unit from Naval Air Station Whidbey Island recovered a stranded hunter experiencing fatigue and severe hydration.
The Navy’s search and rescue team found the hunter on a small ledge “precariously close to a 70 ft. drop to another cliff outcropping,” and an MH-60S helicopter released a rescue airman on a hoist to bring the hunter to safety, according to the service.
Naval Air Station Whidbey Island’s search and rescue team is equipped with three MH-60S helicopters.
