October 2, 2013
By Gene Johnson, The Associated Pres
s
SEATTLE - Search and rescue
officials renewed their efforts Wednesday to find a man and a woman
missing in separate, remote parts of southwest Washington after a
helicopter rescued two other hikers from waist-deep snow.
Hikers Matt Margiotta and Kyla
Arnold were hoisted aboard a Coast Guard helicopter Tuesday evening from
the snowy Pacific Crest Trail where it crosses the western flank of
12,280-foot Mount Adams. The helicopter rescue came after a group of
ground searchers made it to within less than a mile of the couple, only
to be stopped by deep snow and failing daylight.
The helicopter also picked up the five ground searchers, including one who had sprained an ankle, the Coast Guard said.
Two other hikers remained missing
Wednesday. One, Kristopher Zitzewitz, was last seen Saturday in the Big
Lava Beds area of Gifford Pinchot National Forest, southwest of the
mountain. Ground crews resumed searching for him Wednesday morning, said
Skamania County Undersheriff Dave Cox, and though there was at least a
brief break in the weather it remained unclear whether crews would be
able to look by helicopter as well.
Meanwhile, officials were coming
up with a game plan for finding Alejandra Wilson, who had also been
hiking the Pacific Crest Trail and was believed to be about a day's hike
north of where Margiotta and Arnold were found.
Wilson's father, Dane Wilson of
Portland, Ore., last heard from her Friday, as she was leaving Trout
Lake, a tiny hamlet south of Mount Adams, for White Pass. He reported
her overdue after she failed to check in again by Monday, but it wasn't
clear whether she needed any assistance.
Margiotta, Arnold and Wilson were
all hiking the length of the Pacific Crest Trail, which runs 2,650
miles from Mexico to the Canadian border, and kept online journals of
their travels.
In an update Friday, Arnold
mentioned having run into Wilson. She also described having nearly run
out of food after heavy rains storms forced her and Margiotta to huddle
under a tarp for four days last week - long delaying their arrival in
Trout Lake.
"We finally made it to Trout Lake
today and another huge storm is rolling in," Arnold wrote. "Everyone
says we can't make it because of the weather situation, and to be honest
it's quite terrifying, but I can't fathom coming this far and giving
up."
The Yakima County Sheriff's
Office search and rescue team was on standby to provide assistance as
needed, Sgt. George Town said Wednesday. He noted that it isn't uncommon
for late-season Pacific Crest Trail arrivals to run into snow and
sometimes need help, but the hikers are usually well experienced and
prepared after more than 2,000 miles on foot.
"They get a fair amount of
experience between Mexico and here," he said. "They're adept, generally
speaking, but this was a pretty good early snowfall."
Wilson was apparently far enough
north that she would be out of cellphone range, unlike Margiotta and
Arnold, who managed to call for help Monday and give rescuers their
coordinates, Town said.
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Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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