The following accounts of field operations are the best efforts of the newsletter editor, are NOT official reports, and may have errors and omissions, for which apologies and regrets are expressed in advance.
January
January 17, 1995 - Snowmobile Training at Smokey Bear Flat with Don Little and Russ Veenker
January 23, 1995 - Avalanche Training with Gary Guenther
January 29, 1995. #1 We had a very successful operation rescuing a lost skier who was overdue from Mammoth Mountain. Gary Guenther and Karl Chang skied through the night and found him near Sotcher Lake. Thanks to many others who participated, and to Mammoth Ski Patrol and management who provided lots of support.
February
February 7, 1995 - Telemark/Avalanche Training at June Mountain with Pete Schoerner
February 14, 1995 - Ice Diving practice. at June Lake with Russ Veenker.
February 22, 1995 - Ice Climbing at 8 AM in Lee Vining Canyon with Pete Schoerner and Doug Nidever. Even if you don't intend to climb the ice, come along to help with other things, and watch and learn. Meet at the Pool Plant off of the Tioga Pass Road. Call Pete to let him know you are coming.
March
March 18, 1995 - Sherwins Famailiarization Ski/Snowshoe Tour at 9 AM with Gary Guenther and Karl Chang. With the large numbers of people skiing this area south of Mammoth Lakes, team members should become familiar with it. We will access the ridge from the Twin Lakes area. This involves a gain of 1250 ft. on C 1-2-3 terrain on wind packed snow slopes of 40 degrees. From the ridge we will discuss the different routes down the north faces. We will descend one or more of these routes after doing a hasty-pit evaluation and reviewing avalanche transceivers. It's 2000 feet vertical down to our cars at the meadow (we will do a car shuttle). The slopes we will be skiing or snowshoeing will be about 30 degrees. We will also have a rescue base in operation, so if you don't want to do the climb & descent, come anyway and help with radio, GPS, plotting, and other basecamp operations, or just watch and learn. Pre-approval is required. Call Gary prior to the trip so he can know how many transceivers and other gear to have on hand. Unsafe weather or snow conditions will cancel. Meet at 9 AM at the Rescue 2 van parking area across from McDonalds.
Helicopter at Wheeler Ridge plane crash
March 21, 1995 - Mammoth Mountain Boundary Ski Tour at 0900 with Karl Chang and Gary Guenther. Alpine and telemark skiers welcome. Bring skins. Call Karl by March 14 so he can make arrangements. Meet at Main Lodge near Patrol room.
Attaboy to Pete Schoerner, who finished tenth from last in the June Mtn. Telherate Triple Challenge with a time of 11:53. There were ten entrants.
Thanks to Greg Enright and Shawn Moats for a most interesting training session on the Incident Command System which they presented at the March meeting.March 28, 1995. #2 - Search for Woman on Highway 120
March 28, 1995. #3 - Downed plane Wheeler Ridge
April
April 1 and 2, 1995 - Winter overnight training at Tioga Pass and Saddlebag Lake area with Gary Guenther and Karl Chang. We will ski/snowshoe into the backcountry and cover the following: Safe winter route selection, navigation, avalanche transceivers, snow shelters, hasty pit evaluation, equipment, moving efficiently over snow. To participate you need the following: Tent, stove, and cook gear to share with one other; sleeping bag rated to 0 degrees F; sleeping pad; warm footgear (i.e heavy leather or plastic boots); metal edge skis with skins or showshoes and ski/probe poles; rain/snow pants and jacket (Goretex or similar); compass; goggles; gaiters; hat; headlamp; warm clothing (NO COTTON); extra socks and gloves; food and other miscellaneous items. Your pack should weigh under 40 pounds. Eleven miles each way and 2700 feet of gain, possibly less if we can drive part way up the road. You need to be in good physical condition to participate. Pre-approval is required. Call Gary or Karl. Meet at 8 AM at the locked gate on the Tioga Pass road.
April 10, 1995. #4 - Lost Skiers Mammoth Mtn
April 12, 1995. #5 - Lost Skier June Mtn. The remains of the missing June Mountain skier were found in July, and identified through his pacemaker serial number.
April 12, 1995. #6 - John Williams deceased
April 21, 1995. #7 - Broken down snowmobile
May
May 11, 1995 - Lake Ice Rescue Training at June Lake with Larry Ford
May 13, 1995. #9 - Body recovery - Wheeler Ridge plane crash
June
June 10, 1995 - Rock Climbing Training at Owens Gorge with Joe Rousek
June 12, 1995. #10 - Overdue Hiker
June 16, 1995 - Ice Axe Training at Ellery Bowl with Gary Guenther
June 20, 1995 - Rope Rescue Training at Tripple Cracks with Greg Enright
June 26, 1995. #11 Overdue climbers on Red Slate fell to their deaths. Found by Gary Guenther in CHP helicopter. Body recovery by Pete Schoerner and Gary Guenther on a difficult slope.
June 27, 1995 - Rope Rescue Training at Howard Falls with Greg Enright
July
Greg Enright and John Estridge examining tracks in picture by Jim Gilbreath posed for team brochure about 1995
July 2, 1995. #12 - Lost 17 year old hiker in McCloud Lake/Red Cones area. Found alive and OK by helicopter and Don Little via snowmobile.
July 2, 1995. #13 - Mt. Morrison false report
July 7, 1995. #14 - During a family hike, a woman fell down the snow and into the rocks at the back of Dragon's Back on Mammoth Mtn. Technical rescue and complex litter lowering operation of roughly 1000 feet. Three family members and two dogs also assisted down.
July 8, 1995 - Swift Water Training on Walker River with Pete Schoerner.
July 11, 1995. #15 - Yosemite Mutual Aid - Sallee Burns and search dog Trapper responded to Yosemite Park for 3 days to search for a missing woman in the Badger Pass/Glacier Point area. Not yet found as of August 21, 1995.
July 11, 1995 - Class # 3 in the Rock Rescue/Stretcher series at Howard Falls (below Twin Lakes in Mammoth) with Greg Enright, Don Little and Shawn Moats.
July 18, 1995 - Class # 4 in the Rock Rescue/Stretcher series at Horseshoe lake with Greg Enright, Don Little and Shawn Moats.
July 21, 1995. #16 - Elderly man collapsed in Owens Gorge, helped out by Forest Service before the team arrived.
July 22, 1995. #17 - Three young mountain bikers on Mammoth turned left instead of right at the top and tried to go down Dave's run without benefit of bike skis. Technical rescue callout, but Dan Wright and Gary Wrightman helped them down to the top of Chair 9, then down via snowmobiles just before dark.
July 31, 1995. #18 - Car over the side on Tioga Pass. Technical rescue brought victims up 70 feet of high angle litter raising.
Thanks to Julie Stelman for the Blood-Borne Pathogen training at the July meeting.
August
August 1, 1995. Hilton Lakes hypothermia victim, handled by Doug Magee and CHP helicopter.August 9, 1995. #19 David Keeler, age 7, got separated while on a family hike above Lake George. The team searched for about an hour before David showed up walking up the road from the Coldwater drainage.
August 17, 1995. #20 Cy Walker was hit by a large boulder and was knocked into the cascades above Lake George. Technical rescue by high angle litter lowering.
August 22, 1995. #21 Injured knee, Mt. Banner area
August 23, 1995. #22 Lost Hiker, Green Creek
August 28, 1995. #23 Broken Leg, Lundy Waterfall area
There were also seven calls that were handled by Doug Magee interviewing or were invalid.Welcome to new Candidates Brandon Chappell, Jake Tenenbaum, and Dan Pennington.
September
September 3, 1995. #24 Lost hiker, Hartley Springs
September 10, 1995. #25 Anthony Moura was injured with a broken leg near Gem Lake, evacuated via the SCE tram. Responders were: Magee, Doug and Sharon Nidever, Enright, Feiner, Estridge, Joe Rousek, Moats, and Veenker.
September 10, 1995. #26 Reporting party found Gabe Williams on Purple Lake trail incoherent and thrashing. Teams went out at 2030 via foot and horse and moved the victim to LZ at Purple Lake. H-40 evacuated. Responders were: Magee, Enright, Moats, Veenker, Estridge, Enyeart, Nelson, Wright, Joe Rousek, Stelman, Yost, Little, Schoerner, Browne, Frey, and Schlieker. Pete's stomach didn't like the horses, so he was flown out too.
September 10, 1995 - CPR refresher course at Mammoth Fire Station #1 (Main Street).
September 14, 1995. #27 Allen Vishoot broke an ankle at the top of the falls in Lundy Canyon. The team hiked in with a wheeled litter, but victim was evacuated by helicopter. Responders were: Estridge, Case, Magee, Little, Lalande, Feiner, and Clayton.
September 17, 1995. #28 Mike Woods fell while skiing in the North Peak/Steelhead Lake area. Russ Veenker was in the area, received a report from a passer-by, located the victim, and called for assistance. Helicopter 525 moved the victim to Mammoth hospital. Responders were: Magee, Enyeart, Nelson, Enright, Schlieker, Frey, Estridge, Moats, and Veenker.
September 26, 1995 - Mountain Navigation (map and compass) training with Jim Gilbreath, at 6 PM at his home near Toms Place. This is the classroom half of a two-day course. There will be handout notes and plotting templates, and a written exam. The field training will be in October, with orienteering skills testing later. Take Owens Gorge Rd 0.9 miles from 395 and turn left on Wheeler View Dr., right on Jeffery Pine Rd, and right on Covington. If you can't find the place, you REALLY need the training. Bring a chair if you want to sit, a 7-1/2 minute USGS map (preferably TOMS PLACE or MAMMOTH MTN if you have it), and a liquid-filled rotary dial compass (Silva, Suunto, etc).
September 28, 1995. #29 The team responded to the river below Devil's Postpile to assist the Park Service in swiftwater extraction of a man who fell during a log crossing and was trapped by the current between the log and the bottom. deceased, sad to say.
Friday evening September 29, and Saturday morning September 30. ELT exercise jointly with the Orange County Sheriff's Aero Squadron. Friday BBQ in Bridgeport at 5:30-7 PM, and a pre-exercise meeting at Memorial Hall 7-7:30 PM. Saturday 8 AM. We will place the ELT transmitter for the aviators to locate.
October
October 2, 1995. #30 Mike Meyers was climbing the glacier on the north side of Mt. Dana when his partner dropped an ice tool. When Meyers attempted to grab the tool as it slid by, he lost his traction and slid 150 feet down the ice. During the fall he caught a crampon and was vaulted into a series of cartwheels. H40 flew Gary Guenther, a park ranger, and a park medic to the area, where they climbed the ice and lowered the victim to an LZ. Responders were: Moats, Guenther, Little, Case, Burns, Enyeart, and Frey.
From Review-Herald newspaper report by Kelli Du Fresne:
SAR team helps man off glacier
The Mono County Sheriff's Search and Rescue Team lent a hand to Medic II and Yosemite National Park Rangers during a medical rescue from the Mt. Dana Glacier on Monday.
According to Lt. Cole Hampton, the Sheriff's department was called at 9:45 a.m. to help with a climbing accident. Yosemite park officials reported that the victim tumbled 150 feet while climbing the glacier.
The victim, Mike Meyers, a 28-year-old fireman from Las Vegas, was reportedly suffering from a broken femur, a fractured shin bone on the other leg, a fractured left wrist and facial lacerations.
Meyers was moved from the glacier and taken to a landing area where a California Highway Patrol helicopter picked him up and took him to Mammoth Hospital. Where his is listed in stable condition and released today.
While the Sheriff's department was not called until almost 10 a.m. the accident reportedly occurred at 7:20 a.m.
Six search and rescue steam members, Medic II, a CHP helicopter and two national park employees helped with the medical rescue.
October 3, 1995. #31 After the team meeting at June Lake, Don Willer was reported overdue while cutting wood east of Smokey Bear Flat. The area was searched by vehicle until 0230, then a helicopter ordered for "first light". H-80 arrived at 0930 (headwinds). The victim was spotted walking down 395 by former team member John Payne, who was driving a county bus southbound and radioed the location to Jim Gilbreath, who took Mr. Willer home. Reponders were: Moats, Schoerner, Clayton, Chang, Rousek, and Gilbreath. Sorry if I missed anyone. It was dark.
October 4, 1995 - GPS receiver training and practice at 5 PM at Smokey Bear Flat with Jim Gilbreath. Bring your compass, a flashlight, and an Old Mammoth map if you have one.
October 6, 1995 - Compass Travel (orienteering) training, practice and testing with Jim Gilbreath any time from 9 AM to 5 PM., at his home near Toms Place. For both Members and Candidates. Bring your compass and come by for an hour or two of fun in the Tufa rocks and trees any time before 5 PM.
October 10, 1995. #32 David Wong fell on icy slope while hiking from Nydiver Lakes to Garnet Lake. Partner hiked out for help Oct. 10. A team of six hiked in from Agnew Meadows from 2030 to 0145, finding the victim west of Garnet Lake generally stable but with a broken left wrist and injured left leg and knee. Rescue 7 from Fallon NAS evacuated the victim at 0930, and the team hiked out. Responders were: Little, Clayton, Gilbreath, Frees, Frey, Glenn, Browne, Nelson, Mayfield, Rousek, and Estridge.
October 14, 1995. #33 William Hamlin died in his sleep at Hilton Lake #2. Our team hiked in with a wheeled litter from the Hilton Lakes trailhead. Helicopter 94A was used to evacuate Mr. Hamlin, and our team hiked out to the mine road gate below Davis Lake where Karl Chang picked them up. Responders were: Moats (IC), Gilbreath (ops), Enright (field lead), Estridge, Case, Unis, Frey, Enyeart, Chang, Feiner, Guenther, and Little.
October 21, 1995 - Compass Travel (orienteering) training, practice and testing with Jim Gilbreath any time from 9 AM to 5 PM., at his home near Toms Place. For both Members and Candidates. Bring your compass and come by for an hour or two of fun in the Tufa rocks and trees any time before 5 PM.
October 22, 1995. #34 This one wasn't in our county, but might be of interest. On Sunday October 22, Jim Gilbreath heard a ham radio call for assistance on a seldom-used UHF repeater, and helped get a rescue started by the Inyo team. A hiker hurrying down to get emergency aid encountered a ham near Lamarck Lake. A companion had fallen on the snowfield below Lamarck Col, and had a compound femur fracture, head injuries, and was in shock. CHP H-40 got there before dark and effected the rescue.
October 28, 1995. #35 Nicholas Davis fell to his death while ice climbing on the north slope of Mt. Dana. A team of six team members led by Gary Guenther was flown in via helicopter on October 29, and effected the evacuation via helicopter, then hiked out. Responders were: Veenker, Estridge, Guenther, Burns, Case, Schoerner, Rousek, Lalande and Chang.
Preparing to move the subject to the helicopter landing zone
Preparing to move the subject to the helicopter landing zone
Helicopter arriving to extract the subject
Helicopter landing to extract the subject
Preparing to move the subject to the helicopter
Ready to load the subject in the helicopter
Karl Chang, Steve Case, Joe Rousek, Gary Guenther, Sam LaLande, Pete Schoerner and John Estridge were the responders
A warm welcome to Claire Unis, and Shelley Mayfield, who were accepted as new Candidates at the October meeting.
November
November 10, 1995 - Night Tracking training with Greg Enright 5 to 8 PM at Crestview Rest Area. Dress warmly. Bring some kind of a tracking stick (an old ski pole with inch marks works well), and as powerful a light as you have.
November 17, 1995 - Rescue 2 van familiarization, with Greg Enright at 5 PM. Meet at the van parking site in the Forest Service maintenance lot back in the trees across Main Street from McDonald's.
November 24, 1995. #36 We had a three-day operation beginning on November 24 to search for a missing hiker, Ted Gies of Bishop, in the McGee Creek area. We had five ground search teams and a helicopter. Excellent work by Sallee Burns and Trapper the search dog led to concentration on Esha Canyon and Nevahbe Ridge. A fine tracking job by Greg Enright led to the victim's pack near Lake 3038T. The victim's body (unfortunately deceased) was located from the air on a rock ledge at the edge of a snow and ice chute on the Nevahbe Ridge at about 10,900'.
Operations resumed the next day at daybreak to recovery the body. Gary Guenther led three other climbers (Estridge, Chang, and Case) up the ice to the victim, and lowered him about 60% of the way down before running out of daylight. Conditions were very windy and cold, and the wind was blowing rocks loose. It even blew away a litter from the bottom of the chute, which was tethered and weighted down with lots of rocks. On the third day Pete Schoerner, Joe Rousek, Doug Nidever, and Dean Rosnau went up the ice and completed the lowering out of the chute. H-40 evacuated the body from the LZ near the little lake. Veenker was Ops Leader the first two days, Gilbreath the last. Responders over the three days included: Burns & Trapper, Case, Chang, Clayton, DeGeorge, Enright, Enyeart, Estridge, Gilbreath, Glenn, Guenther, Little, Mayfield, Nelson, Nidever, Rosnau, Rousek, Schlieker, Schoerner, Soler, Soler, Stelman, Unis, Veenker, Weatherly, and Zidell.
November 26, 1995. #37 There was a tragic drowning at Hot Creek. The body was recovered by the team, with good work by all of the many responding members. Sorry I don't have the complete list, but those I can remember include Chang, DeGeorge, Enright, Estridge, Ford, Gilbreath, Guenther, Little, Nelson, Rousek, Soler, Veenker, and Weatherly.
A warm welcome to Jim Zidell, who was accepted as a new Candidate at the November meeting, and welcome back to Candidate Pete DeGeorge.
The annual election of the team's officers was held at the November meeting. Don Little is the new President, replacing Dan Wright, who has done a stellar job for three years. Greg Enright was re-elected Training Officer. John Estridge was re-elected Equipment Officer, and also takes over the Treasurer position from Ann and Joe Rousek. Julie Stelman was re-elected Secretary. Jim Gilbreath was re-elected Vice President, and will also be unofficial assistant to the training officer.
December
December 8, 1995 at 6 PM at Mammoth Fire Department on Main Street. SAR-TECH-III review and written test, with instruction by San Bernardino Sheriff's Department personnel. This is a high priority for our entire team, including candidates. Though Boe tells us we will be taught most of what we will need to know for the test, keep reading the red SAR book and participate in as much training as you can manage so as to be ready. SAR-TECH field testing for map and compass skills will take place Saturday December 9, time and place TBD.
Congratulations are in order to the following who completed the SAR-TECH testing, and who are now certified as SAR TECHNICIAN-II: Sallee Burns, Steve Case, Pete DeGeorge , Bruce Enyeart, John Estridge, Bob Feiner, Jim Gilbreath, Gary Guenther, Don Little, Shawn Moats, Joe Rousek, and Pete Schoerner. Doug Magee was certified at SAR TECHNICIAN-III. For those who passed the written test Friday and were not able to attend on Saturday to do the field testing, a trip to San Bernardino County to complete the test will be arranged.
Lara Wilkinson, Donna Lisa Albini, and Charles Byrne were voted into the team as Candidates at the December meeting.