MADERA COUNTY - On August 5, 2021, around 5:15 pm, the Madera County Communications Center received a call for service for a male juvenile who had become separated from his group while hiking in the Sierra Nevada Mountains near Mount Ritter and Banner Peak.
After summiting Banner Peak, a group of 9 adult and juvenile hikers descended down the mountain. At some point during the descent, the 14-year-old male became separated. Following an unsuccessful search of the area, a group leader for the hikers was able to find cell service and called 911 for help.
Based on the remote location of the party, Search and Rescue Deputies requested air support from the California Highway Patrol, who deployed helicopter H-40 to the area. Due to high winds, they were unable to search, but landed and made contact with part of the group who had returned to their camp.
Additional resources were deployed to assist with the mission via CAL-OES, including a military helicopter with night vision and FLIR capabilities, along with a fixed-wing aircraft with specialized mapping capabilities. Both aircraft searched the mountain late into the night but were not able to locate the missing teenager.
This morning (8/6) just after 8 am, H-40 returned to the search area and resumed their efforts. Around 11 am, while H-40 was refueling in Mammoth and picking up two Mono County searchers, Incident Command received a text message from one of the group leaders reporting the possible discovery of the missing teenager. Within minutes, IC received confirmation the teenage subject was located near Lake Catherine with minor to moderate injuries.
A Military CH-47 Chinook helicopter was deployed to conduct the rescue of the injured hiker and search party. The party was recovered and flown to Mammoth airport, where the teenager was transferred to an awaiting ambulance and his family.
The Madera County Sheriff's Office would like to thank the members of the public who helped search efforts; their relentless drive to find the teenager was inspiring. We would also like to thank the Mono County Sheriff's Office for their role in coordinating searchers and medical aid for the teenager, the California Highway Patrol Air Operations Unit, and the US National Guard for diverting several air assets and responding to our call for assistance.
Sheriff Tyson Pogue states, “This was a high stakes mission that we are so glad to see have a happy ending. Extensive coordination is required to make missions like these successful. We are so grateful to our agency partners who, despite stretched resources due to the ongoing wildfires throughout the state, immediately offered their assistance for this rescue.”
