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- Stranded hikers successfully rescued in two separate incidents
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By Myrna Trauntvein
Times-News Correspondent
Four male hikers in two separate hiking parties were rescued and brought to safety with the assistance of the Juab and Utah County rescue crews.
The first incident involved two male juveniles and the second involved two young men in their early 20s.
"The two teen males were located with the valuable assistance of the Utah Department of Public Safety Aero Bureau helicopter; and ultimately, the two male juveniles were air lifted to safety from the summit of Mt. Nebo," said Juab County Sheriff Douglas Anderson.
On Monday, August 17, at approximately 6:30 p.m., the Sanpete County Sheriff's Office received a 911 call from a male juvenile who with another male juvenile were stranded on the ridge line of Mt. Nebo between the north and middle peak, said Anderson. The male reported a medical condition which prevented them from walking off the mountain.
The call was dispatched to the Juab County Sheriff's Office and rescue units were activated.
"Helicopter pilots from the Utah Department of Public Safety located the hiker," said Anderson. "Due to the darkness and the strong prevailing winds, it was determined that neither an air or ground rescue attempt would be safe or feasible."
A decision was made to airlift provisions, medication and warm weather gear to the young men on the summit with the use of a helicopter, he said.
A care package with provisions was successfully delivered and their rescue retrieval was postponed until daylight the next morning.
"Both men were successfully air lifted off the ridge by helicopter at approximately 6:30 a.m. the next morning on August 18 and transported to the Central Valley Medical Center for a medical assessment," said Anderson.
"In addition to, and simultaneous with the rescue operation on Mt. Nebo, rescue units also received a report of overdue hikers in the vicinity of the Loop Road Summit Trail," said Anderson.
He said that rescue crews searched diligently and ultimately observed flares that were set off by the lost hikers near the Summit Trail.
"Juab County Rescue units were flown into an area proximate to where the hikers were located and rescue members hiked to their location," he said.
The male hikers, identified as 20-year-old Adam McBeth of Columbia, Pennsylvania and 21-year-old Erik Keller of Springville, were found in good condition but had become lost and disoriented.
The hikers were directed to a nearby road access name Nebo Creek Road, said Anderson.
"The hikers, with rescue members, hiked to the access road where they were picked up by Utah and Juab County Sheriff's deputies," said Anderson. "The hikers were delivered in good condition to family members."
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