A 22-year-old skier was safely extracted from a Rich County ravine early Monday morning after spending over 12 hours stranded, according to officials. Search efforts began on Sunday when the Rich County Sheriff's Office received a distress signal via a 911 text at approximately 4:35 p.m., as reported by FOX13. The skier, having slid into the ravine around 1 p.m., lost contact with a 20-year-old male companion who was also skiing with her.
The woman's skiing partner, ending up safe before nightfall, was located just before 7 p.m. on Sunday. Complicated by harsh weather conditions, a collaborative rescue mission employed drones, ATVs, and snowmobiles to conquer the treacherous terrain in search of the woman, as ABC4 detailed in their coverage. A helicopter from the Utah Department of Public Safety, initially delayed due to weather, was eventually able to airlift her to safety.
Preceding the helicopter extraction, visibility of the stranded skier was first established by drone crews, which subsequently enabled ground teams to move in via snowshoes and snowmobile, as per Cache Valley Daily. Rich County Search and Rescue, alongside Cache County Search and Rescue, worked relentlessly through the night to ensure the skier's return to safety.
The operation spanned until early hours of Monday, and by 4:15 a.m., the skier was finally reached and retrieved by rescue crews. Upon evaluation at the scene, and found not to have sustained injuries, the woman was able to return home, FOX13 reported.
