Latest news with #TulareCountySheriffsOffice
Daily Mail
9 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Hiker, 46, suffers dehydration after getting trapped behind enormous roaring waterfall for two days
A hiker from California has been miraculously rescued after being stuck behind a massive waterfall for two days. Ryan Wardwell, 46, of Long Beach, had set out to hike the Seven Teacups Trail in Sequoia National Forest on Sunday morning. Wardwell planned to rappel the waterfalls, using ropes to descend from top to bottom. He was last seen at the top of the waterfalls on Sunday, near the North Fork of the Kern River. The 46-year-old was reported missing the next day when he did not return to his car late on Sunday night. Tulare County Sheriff's Office began an extensive search of the area using aircraft equipped with camera and infrared technology. Using this technology, emergency responders were able to find Wardwell's possible location Monday night, according to a statement from the sheriff's office. Because it was late, a plan was devised to rescue him at first light the next morning. Early on Tuesday, the TCSO Swiftwater-Dive Rescue Team and Search and Rescue teams went to the area and began looking for Wardwell. A drone was used to check behind a massive waterfall and Wardwell was found alive, but unresponsive. He later told deputies that he had come off his rappel lines and became trapped behind the water due to the extreme hydraulics of the river. A California Highway Patrol (CHP) Helicopter H-40 arrived on the scene and an rescue team member was lowered down to hoist Wardwell to safety. The hiker was then flown to a nearby landing zone and checked by medics. He was treated for minor injuries and dehydration before being reunited with his family members on the scene. 'The TCSO Emergency Services Division reminds the public to always be aware of their environment and capabilities, especially when navigating white water rivers,' the sheriff's office said in a statement. Wardwell's close encounter comes after three experienced hikers died by drowning in a pool at the end of the Kern River last August. The drowning was described as a 'freak accident,' the LA Times reported. Search and rescue officials believe a powerful whirlpool formed in the water when a large rock or log got stuck. The American Canyoneering Association rates Seven Teacups as Class 3C, which means it has flowing water with strong currents and requires at least intermediate technical skills.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Man trapped behind a California waterfall for two days rescued "alive and well," officials say
A man trapped behind a waterfall for more than two days in the Sequoia National Forest was rescued by deputies who rapelled to him from a helicopter, according to the Tulare County Sheriff's Office. In a video the office posted to social media on Wednesday, one deputy is seen being lowered from a helicopter into a nook behind the cascading waterfall on the Seven Teacups Trail to reach 46-year-old Ryan Wardwell of Long Beach. Wardwell embarked on the trail Sunday morning to rappel the waterfalls but was reported missing on Monday. He was last seen at the top of the waterfalls on Sunday evening, near the North Fork of the Kern River. The sheriff's office identified Wardwell's location using cameras and infrared technology attached to aircraft and devised a rescue plan to retrieve him by dawn the next morning. On Tuesday morning, the sheriff's office sent their search and rescue team as well as their swift-water dive team to the location. Using a drone, they found Wardwell behind the waterfall, alive and well, the office said. A helicopter from the California Highway Patrol was sent to the scene, and Wardwell was pulled out of the waterfall. Authorities said he was then flown to a landing zone nearby and treated for minor injuries and dehydration. He reunited with his family, who were also at the landing zone. Wardwell told authorities that he had come off of his rappel lines and got trapped behind the waterfall because of the intense river flow. "The TCSO Emergency Services Division reminds the public to always be aware of their environment and capabilities, especially when navigating white water rivers," the sheriff's office said in the post. The Seven Teacups Trail, about 4 miles long, is known for its continuous, cascading pools that resemble teacups. The trail runs along Dry Meadow Creek, which flows into the Kern River. Hiking blogs describe the trail as challenging and potentially dangerous if unprepared. It can't be completed solely by foot, and hikers need rope and equipment to rappel down the canyon and on their way back up. The American Canyoneering Assn. rates the Seven Teacups as Class 3C, which means it has flowing water with strong currents and requires intermediate technical skills. Last August, three hikers drowned while swimming in a whirlpool that unexpectedly formed at the end of the same trail. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
