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| Montgomery workers help locate lost hikers |
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10/23/2014
By Jamie Vinson
Advocate managing editor
Montgomery County Fire/EMS, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and 911 Center assisted in the search for two hikers Sunday evening near the Montgomery-Powell line.
A 911 call was made from a cell phone in which a female informed dispatch she and another female were hiking and lost somewhere near Camp McKee. The females, who were from out of town, started out hiking around 5 p.m. at Pilot Knob, Rob Kiskaden, Montgomery County 911 Center supervisor, said.
The pair apparently had climbed several rock faces before they become lost.
Powell County Search and Rescue was on standby, Kiskaden said, and Air Methods Kentucky offered aerial support by flying over with a spotlight.
Locating the females was a coordinated effort between the dispatch center here, the sheriff’s office and the local fire dept. Powell County/Clay City Fire Dept. also assisted in the search.
Dispatchers here, Kiskaden said, stayed in contact with one of the females “pretty constantly.” Cell service was bad, but the 911 center coordinated the search with some coordinates obtained from the cell phone.
“Some coordinates were hitting from the phone. That’s what they initially had to go by,” Kiskaden said. “That and some landmarks. Dispatchers stayed on the phone with them and the sheriff’s office went out too. They sounded sirens to see if the females could hear them. Some of the guys from the fire dept. here hiked in to search … it was a joint effort between here and Clay City.”
The last landmark the females reported seeing was a yellow “Pilot Knob Sanctuary” sign.
“Air Methods Kentucky spotted the females from the air and relayed exact coordinates to rescuers on the ground. They then hiked in to find them, that’s how they located them to get them out of the woods,” Kiskaden said.
Kiskaden described the area the women were hiking in as “rugged country.”
Wesley Delk, Montgomery County Emergency Management director, issued a public thank you to Montgomery County Fire/EMS, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and staff at the Montgomery County 911 Center for their efforts.
“We are especially grateful to Air Methods Kentucky for the aerial support and to the mutual aid from Powell County. Thanks to your efforts, the two subjects were located and while a little shaken up from the event, were uninjured and in good spirits,” Delk said.
The women came out with rescuers at 9:45 p.m. and the scene was cleared at 10:20 p.m.
Kiskaden said if someone becomes lost they should stay put, maintain communication with 911 if possible and try to give the best information as possible as far as landmarks or last known area seen.
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