Injured Hikker Devils Slide
August 24, 2024
Devil’s Slide Trail in Idyllwild
2024-033
Written by: Richard Yocum
I had just enough time to shower and grab a bite to eat after an all-day mission when the call came in for an injured hiker about 1-1.5 miles up the Devil’s Slide Trail in Idyllwild. Geoff was at Humber Park only 7 minutes after the callout, followed only minutes later by Donny and me.
Multiple personnel and engines from Cal Fire were staging on scene with a wheeled litter. Darkness had fallen and Riverside Sheriff’s Rescue 9 helicopter arrived and began circling overhead trying to lo-cate our injured subject. I reached Rescue 9 by radio and apprised them of the assets on scene, con-firmed that we were well positioned on the ground to complete the mission, and Rescue 9 departed.
Just after that we saw what appeared to be some headlamps through the trees up the hill. Geoff and I hiked up the trail and intercepted our injured subject slowing hobbling down the trail with a trekking pole and the assistance of her two hiking companions. As Cal Fire also joined us, we conducted a joint patient assessment. She described “rolling” her ankle, wrapping it tightly with a compression bandage, and taking some ibuprofen.
We assisted her walking down trail to the parking lot where she declined further medical evaluation and was driven off by her hiking companions. The other RMRU responders who were still driving to the trailhead (Matt, Ryan, and Andy) were notified that the mission had been completed.
RMRU Members Involved: (Matt Frenken, Donny Goetz, Andy Hayte, Geoff Marshall, Ryan Roleson, and Richard Yocum)
Other Agencies Involved: (Riverside County Sheriff’s deputies, Rescue 9 helicopter, and Cal Fire)