Nearly one year ago, my wife and I were hiking near Mt. Cheaha. I slipped on a steep, rocky path, off the main trail, and got badly injured. Fortunately, my wife's cell phone was able to reach 911. Two volunteers from the the Emergency and Rescue Squad managed to reach us and get me to a waiting ambulance. My recovery has been slow, but it is now almost complete. In gratitude my wife and I have made a contribution through our charitable fund. Thank you.
Review from Guidestar
At approximately 8:09 PM, Clay County E-911 received a call from two lost hikers, a male and female, that had been on the Cave Creek Trail and had missed a turn for the Pinhoti. They were not injured and had some food and water. The main concern at this point was hypothermia due to cold and rain. CCRS Operations Officer Brian Andrews made a plan paged out for the SAR and several members responded. There was no easy access to the location they were at, but coordinates were pinpointed and verified a second time about an hour later. The last part of the hike was very rough terrain. It took 35 minutes to traverse 100 yards. CCRS made visual contact at 10:52 PM and the hikers reached the rescue team at 11:27 PM. All parties were out of the woods and back at staging around 12:35 AM and everyone back in service at 1:30 AM. The hikers were transported back to their vehicle by CCRS Captain Scotty Parker. This operation turned out as well as it could have given the weather. The male hiker was properly trained in wilderness survival and they did everything exactly right in our eyes. They got off trail and were trying to make it shorter to Highway 281 since it was getting late, cold, and wet. They reached terrain that was taking an extreme amount of time to cover. They dialed 911 and followed instructions perfectly. CCRS loves to be able to help our friends and neighbors, and scenarios like this make it enjoyable for us. No injuries, quick locating and extrication. Thank you to all the members of Clay County Rescue Squad, Clay County Sheriff's Office, and Clay County E-911 for their assistance.