Incredible moment helicopter rescues Utah hiker from ‘atmospheric flood’ that killed two others
Dramatic footage captured the moment a hiker was hoisted out of a canyon on the Utah-Arizona border as floodwaters rushed in quickly.
Torrential rains all week led to the deaths of at least two amid desperate rescue missions in the area, which came as the west coast continues to be wracked by devastating weather.
An atmospheric river event has washed out the region in recent days, bringing heavy rainfall, bitter winds and blizzards.
After months of historic snowfall in California and surrounding states, a severe weather front brought the third major storm of the year to the coast, leading to a death toll of at least 16.
Officials in Washington County, Utah, were forced to construct makeshift ziplines after three adults and three children were stranded by a flash flood
Deep flooding has wreaked havoc on the west coast in recent days as torrential rains washed in
The shocking footage of the airlift brought Sheriff Lt. Allen Alldredge of Kane County confirmed that the first dead man was a group of three hikers who ventured across the Utah-Arizona border.
Another man rescued from the group was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was treated for hypothermia and serious injuries after surviving the ordeal for several days.
Authorities confirmed they found a second body in the cavernous area on Wednesday afternoon, believed to be a man who was reported missing earlier this week, but this has not yet been confirmed.
Two Utah Department of Public Safety helicopters were deployed Wednesday to rescue the group of three hikers, a day after another 11 others were pulled from the fast-flowing floodwaters.
In Washington County, Utah, the sheriff’s office confirmed they responded to a call Thursday after receiving a report that three adults and three children were stranded on a separate canyon trail.
A flash flood swept through the area as the walkers passed through, trapping the group, including the children aged just two, four and six, on one side of the river.
Search and rescue teams built a makeshift zipline to transport equipment and blankets across the river, before anchoring another to carry the individuals to safety.
Flash flooding could raise water levels in seconds, with the atmospheric river storm sweeping the west coast since last weekend, causing serious damage to countless homes and businesses.
Emergency services have been called all along the West Coast since storm “Pineapple Express” made landfall last weekend.
In another heroic helicopter rescue, footage surfaced of a man desperately clinging to a wall after being swept into the raging Los Angeles River.
LA Fire Department ground and air crews responded around 5 p.m. Wednesday when the man, who has yet to be identified, clung for life to a “concrete sheer wall.”
In nearby Orange County, officials have declared a local state of emergency due to the violent storms.
Residents of four apartment buildings in San Clemente were forced to evacuate after a hill at the back of the property collapsed — just days after a man died in Oakland, California, when a warehouse roof collapsed on top of him from the weather.
A swimming pool at a residential home in Orange County, California on the edge of a hill that collapsed amid the storm
Flooding in Watsonville, California washed away residents after the Parajo River overflowed. Sandbags have been issued by several California cities and emergency shelters have been set up
The town of Woodlake was also among those damaged by the atmospheric river storm, with firefighters and police officers reportedly driving canoes across the streets to rescue those trapped in their homes.
Cities on the West Coast have been handing out sandbags to prevent the deep flood water from entering homes, while emergency shelters have been set up.
California’s weather conditions come as it was hit last week by the third major storm of the year, the Pineapple Express storm.
The devastating weather front placed more than 20 provinces under a state of emergency and evacuation orders were issued in coastal provinces late last week.
Some parts of California saw more than an inch of rain fall every hour over the weekend, while mountainous regions such as the San Bernadino Valley continued to be blanketed in snowfall.
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