A 64-year-old hiker was rescued Sunday afternoon from Shore Acres State Park in Oregon after she was found sheltering under a log, making her undetectable to thermal imaging technology used in earlier searches.
The woman, who had been missing since Friday evening, began shouting for help after hearing helicopters overhead, leading ground searchers to her location around 12:30 p.m. Sunday, the U.S. Coast Guard announced Tuesday.
She was showing clear signs of hypothermia and dehydration when found, according to the Coast Guard.
The rescue involved multiple agencies in an effort that began Friday when the woman separated from her foraging group in the park.
Oregon State Police contacted the Coast Guard Friday night, concerned about the hiker’s safety due to rugged terrain, nightfall, and her lack of survival gear. Recognizing the urgency of her situation, watchstanders at Sector Columbia River quickly mobilized to assist, the Coast Guard said.
Initial search efforts included an MH-65E Dolphin helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station North Bend, equipped with thermal imaging, which searched Friday night but found nothing.
On Saturday, personnel from the Coos County Sheriff’s Office, Oregon State Police, and Coos County Search and Rescue Team, including K-9 units, scoured the park. Additional Coast Guard flights Saturday evening, including an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Air Station Astoria with a Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) camera, yielded no results.
By Sunday morning, hopes were beginning to dwindle as time passed without any sign of the woman. Around 12:30 p.m., members of the ground party heard shouting coming from a remote area within the State Park. The search party had to navigate through rough terrain and dense brush to locate the woman.
After she was found, ground teams started a fire to warm her while awaiting air support. A Coast Guard helicopter arrived at 1:45 p.m., and crew members placed her in a hypothermic bag before hoisting her into the helicopter. She was then transported to Bay Area Hospital in North Bend.
“The Coast Guard and our partner agencies here on the Oregon Coast routinely train together to ensure we can execute coordinated search and rescue missions whenever we’re called upon,” said Cmdr. Jay Kircher, operations officer at Coast Guard Air Station North Bend. “It’s fantastic to see this teamwork in action and produce a successful outcome.”