SPOKANE, Wash. – The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office rescued a hiker who was lost in the Iller Creek Conservation Area after she called for help and a good Samaritan figured out how to get to her.
Monday night, a hiker called 911 after losing her way just before dark. Officials said they were able to ping her cell phone to get GPS coordinates to narrow their search area.
Air 1 began checking the area using night vision, while the hiker was told to hold the lit screen of her cell phone to the sky. A deputy said they instantly spotted her phone using the night vision goggles.
A citizen in the area approached a park ranger as they planned the hiker’s rescue on their ATVs, SCSO officials said, and helped them find an obscure road to get to the victim.
The citizen and the park ranger rode their ATVs to the hiker’s location while Air 1 hovered above. They were able to find the hiker, who wasn’t hurt, and give her a ride back to her car.
“This is a wonderful example of a citizen working with law enforcement using specialized equipment to quickly and efficiently locate a lost hiker and provide her the help she needed,” SCSO said in a release.
