Injured woman rescued despite tricky terrain in Gibson Jack area

POCATELLO — Rescuers recovered and saved an injured female successful nan backcountry southbound of Pocatello.

Bannock County Search and Rescue, nan Backcountry Rescue Team and Sheriff’s deputies went retired looking for a missing female successful nan early greeting hours connected Tuesday successful nan Gibson Jack area. They recovered her astir a mile and a half up Gibson Mountain that morning, still live and calling for help.

“It’s difficult erstwhile you’re up there, and you cognize that nan family is counting connected your squad to find their loved one,” said Sgt. Nick Zweigart. “A large rewarding facet was seeing nan gratitude of nan family’s faces.”

The study came successful astir 12:30 a.m. The time before, nan female had near for a solo ATV travel astatine 5:30 p.m. and did not return.

Her family started by going to nan Gibson Jack trailhead and recovered her motortruck and trailer. They searched for her connected ft for a fewer hours, and aft not uncovering anything, they called Search and Rescue for help.

Rescuers began to hunt nan area connected ATVs, 4-wheelers and e-bikes done nan acheronian early greeting hours.

“It’s nighttime; you’re going up steep terrain. This information of nan way is very steep, very narrow. Your show is limited, truthful you’re having to conscionable usage your headlights and that’s nan champion you tin do successful nan dark,” Zweigart said.

After not uncovering her for a while, they called successful nan Portneuf Air Rescue helicopter. Despite nan birds-eye view, nan chopper squad could not spot nan missing woman.

“When you spell retired looking for personification and you can’t find them and past arsenic nan hours tick by, you commencement assuming nan worst,” Zweigart said.

When nan sun started to rise, rescuers again near connected e-bikes to thrust up nan upland and hunt for her. This time, they heard her yelling successful nan distance.

“When they heard her voice, they jumped into action and they were calm and gave nan due connection pinch nan remainder of nan team,” Zweigart said.

At 7:30 a.m., rescuers recovered nan missing female 100 feet down a steep embankment. Although she was conscious and talking, she was hurt.

Rescuers past descended down nan embankment utilizing a rope, and brought a carrier handbasket to get her up nan embankment. At this constituent successful nan rescue, it started raining, muddying nan crushed and nan trail.

“They’re each getting wet, they’re going done shrubbery and brushwood connected steep ground. Trying to activity your measurement backmost up to nan main way successful bedewed conditions was a challenge,” Zweigart said. “They each worked slow and safely and sewage up without immoderate issue.”

The female was transported by ambulance distant from nan segment aft rescuers brought her backmost to nan trailhead. According to a station from nan Bannock County Sheriff’s Office, she is safe and is now recovering from nan incident.

Zweigart said to nan heroism of nan volunteers who worked to rescue nan missing woman.

“These guys aren’t retired location doing that for accolades,” Zweigart said. “They do it because they emotion their community.”

The Backcountry Rescue Team is simply a group of volunteers that specializes successful backcountry terrain. If you want to subordinate Search and Rescue aliases nan Backcountry Team, telephone (208) 236-7111 aliases email nzweigart@bannockcounty.gov.