A Colorado train passenger looked out the window – and found a missing hiker

Authored by edition.cnn.com and submitted by inkwater
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A Colorado train passenger helped lead to the rescue of a missing, injured hiker after she spotted her through a train window.

The passenger was riding Colorado’s Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad on October 10 when she spotted the hiker through the window and alerted the train conductor, according to a Facebook post from the San Juan County Office of Emergency Management.

The hiker, a woman from New Mexico, went missing after she began a hike on the Colorado Trail, says the office. She left the trail and headed along the Animas riverbank, where she fell, breaking her leg. She spent two nights injured in the wilderness, according to the office.

“It’s incredible she survived,” DeAnne Gallegos, a spokesperson for the San Juan County OEM, said of the hiker. “She had no food, very little water, no other survival gear. She only had shorts and a tank top and survived in 20-something degree weather.”

After the second night, she managed to find a high-visibility spot on the riverbank – and flagged down the passing train.

Two train staff who were also trained medics crossed the river and stayed with the hiker until the Silverton Medical Rescue team arrived, according to the office.

The missing hiker had broken her leg and spent two nights in the wilderness. From SJCOEM/Facebook/Silverton Medical Rescue

The train staff members were identified as Nick and Klyah Breeden.

The rescue operation was complex: The search and rescue team were flown in on a helicopter and used ropes to transport the injured hiker across the river. Then, a helicopter flew the patient to a nearby hospital. The search and rescue team were transported out of the riverbank area on a small train, according to the office.

“Another person in a moment of need was successfully brought home due to teamwork and collaboration,” wrote the office.

certifiedintelligent on October 29th, 2022 at 14:14 UTC »

Please folks, if you’re going into the wilderness without cell service, get a PLB or satellite messenger. This woman could have had help on the way to her exact location the moment she was injured if she had one.

Edit: yes, I know apple and others are coming out with satellite messaging on phones, but that technology is brand new. PLBs and SPOT/InReach/Zoleo type devices are proven technology with thousands of lives saved. As an avid hiker/backpacker/camper, I personally want my last-resort-before-death option to be a proven piece of equipment that is dead simple to use.

Wonderful-Cup-9556 on October 29th, 2022 at 11:59 UTC »

So fortunate for that woman to be seen- the pain of a broken bone is terrible and she had to be cold, tired, dehydrated and in great pain- kudos to the passenger looking out the window! Definitely good news

tehpwarp on October 29th, 2022 at 08:57 UTC »

The passenger was riding Colorado’s Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad on October 10 when she spotted the hiker through the window and alerted the train conductor

The hiker, a woman from New Mexico, went missing after she began a hike on the Colorado Trail, says the office. She left the trail and headed along the Animas riverbank, where she fell, breaking her leg. She spent two nights injured in the wilderness, according to the office.

After the second night, she managed to find a high-visibility spot on the riverbank – and flagged down the passing train.

Two train staff who were also trained medics crossed the river and stayed with the hiker until the Silverton Medical Rescue team arrived, according to the office.

Really lucky for her. Surviving like that with a broken leg. Reminded me of "Touching the void" by Joe Simpson.