Late Friday (6/26) morning, the Mohave County Sheriff's Office received a call of three hikers (58-year-old female, 50-year-old female, and a 46-year-old female) and their dog visiting from California who had become dehydrated while hiking the SARA's Crack trail system, south of Lake Havasu City. They started their hike late in the morning, around 9am, and were unprepared for the blistering hot temperatures forecasted for Friday. They had run out of water for themselves and their dog and had indicated their dog's paws were bleeding. They had no idea where they were and had left the trail system trying to find help. During their search for help, they had got into an argument and the 58-year-old female hiker had walked away from them. Search and Rescue, the Mohave County Sheriff's Office Division of Boating Safety, Lake Havasu City Fire, River Medical and a Careflight medical helicopter were activated. Search teams began a route and location search through the extensive trail system. All three hikers were found separately from each other. The 58-year-old female was found responsive, but showing signs of heat stroke and was extracted by Careflight and flown to a local hospital for further medical evaluation. The other two hikers were located separately from each other, along with the dog. The hikers were all showing signs of heat exhaustion and brought back to the Command Post. Great job by everyone involved! Search and Rescue would like to remind everyone (especially if deciding to hike on the surface of the sun) to bring plenty of supplies for themselves, as well as everyone in the hiking group – including your pets! Poor decisions like these put our first responders and your pets in dangerous situations.
