Hikers stranded on mountain in snowstorm are rescued after 20 hours, WA officials say

Two hikers became stranded on a Washington mountain for at least 20 hours after a snowstorm caused a whiteout, search and rescue officials said.

The hikers were stuck 6,800 feet up Three Fingers Mountain on Sunday, the Snohomish County Volunteer Search & Rescue team said.

“A strong weather system caused whiteout conditions and heavy snow, making the trail too treacherous for them to continue climbing down,” rescuers said Monday on Facebook.

The rescue team received a locator beacon signal from the hikers at about 11 a.m. Sunday and tried to get to them as quickly as possible.

Officials knew it would take rescuers at least 12 hours to hike up the trail, so the team tried to send a helicopter up. However, the pilots couldn’t see through the snow.

Rescuers checked the forecast and planned to launch the helicopter again hours later. Two helicopters were dispatched, but they couldn’t make it to the hikers’ elevation.

The teams had to hike the rest of the way up the mountain before reaching the stranded hikers to save them, officials said.

“The ground teams hiked for several hours into the night through hazardous conditions and heavy snowfall,” the team said. “Ground teams were able to locate the two hikers and safely assisted them (in) navigating the hazardous conditions and getting off the mountain.”

The rescue was complete at about 7 a.m. Monday morning after about 20 hours, according to the rescue team.

Officials suggested that future hikers should wait until next year to go up the mountain as they expect weather conditions to get worse.

“In the event of an injury or emergency on the mountain, it is estimated to take rescue crews at least a day to be able to access the location due to the current conditions,” rescuers said.

The search and rescue team did not disclose the hikers’ current conditions.

This story was originally published October 12, 2021 at 8:22 AM with the headline "Hikers stranded on mountain in snowstorm are rescued after 20 hours, WA officials say."