Full Notification

   DATE/TIME: Saturday February 29, 2020     8:35PM
 
INCIDENT: Search & Rescue
 
LOCATION: Vivian Creek Trail, Forest Falls
 
VICTIM: Nathan Norley, 42 years old, resident of Santa Monica
 
SUMMARY:
On Saturday, February 29, Yucaipa Sheriff's Station received a search and rescue call in Forest Falls. The caller reported her husband was hiking in the San Gorgonio wilderness and she was tracking him using a personal satellite tracker. She became concerned after her husband's tracker stopped moving and she could no longer reach him. The last known location on the tracker placed him in steep terrain, several miles from any road at about the 9500’ elevation level.
 
Sheriff’s Aviation immediately responded and located the fatigued hiker, who had taken a short fall. Due to the high winds Aviation could not affect a hoist rescue. As weather conditions began deteriorating with rain and snow moving in, Sheriff's San Gorgonio Search and Rescue Team deployed a three-person volunteer search team that is certified in winter mountain rescue. At 8:35 PM the team started toward the hiker’s last known location and traversed the mountain throughout the night, finally reaching the hiker at approximately 6:00 AM. During the nine-hour hike, the team was forced to traverse several treacherous slopes using ice axes and crampons while facing single digit temperatures and wind chills approaching -20 degrees Fahrenheit.
Shortly after 6:00 AM, Sheriff’s Aviation again responded and after an aborted hoist rescue attempt, determined a hoist rescue would not be safe. San Gorgonio SAR members then opted to perform a ground rescue, bringing the hiker out on foot approximately 1.5 miles before reaching an area where a rescue UTV could get access to finalize the rescue and bring the hiker out.
 
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department commends Nathan Norley for his preparedness while hiking in such an unforgiving environment such as Mt. San Gorgonio during winter months. Due to Norley carrying a trackable GPS device, help was requested, and he was quickly located and rescued from an area where there is no cell phone reception. Hikers are encouraged to go out prepared for the hiking environment they plan to hike in, pack the 10 essential emergency provisions, and bring some type of communication device suitable for the area.
 
Refer:              Lt. James Mahan
 
Station:            Emergency Operations Division
 
Phone No.       (909) 252-4100
 
Case No.         042000110
 
JOHN McMAHON, Sheriff-Coroner
San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner Department