Three hikers were plucked from the rugged Big Sur wilderness in a dramatic overnight helicopter rescue after becoming lost and disoriented, with one suffering a medical emergency.<\/p>\n
The rescue operation unfolded Sunday night inside Limekiln State Park, where crews were forced to hack their way through heavily overgrown trails before a Navy helicopter hoisted the stranded trio to safety, according to the Monterey County Sheriff\u2019s Office<\/a>.<\/p>\n Three hikers were rescued from Limekiln State Park in Big Sur on Sunday after becoming lost and disoriented. Monterey County Sheriff’s Office<\/p>\n The ordeal began around 7:30 p.m. when Big Sur Fire received a satellite 911 call requesting help for three hikers who had lost their way in the remote backcountry.<\/p>\n Authorities said one member of the group was also experiencing an unspecified medical emergency, adding urgency to an already difficult rescue.<\/p>\n Big Sur Fire and the Monterey County Sheriff\u2019s Office Search and Rescue team quickly launched a joint operation.<\/p>\n Seven sheriff\u2019s search-and-rescue members headed roughly 2.5 miles into Limekiln State Park at an elevation of about 2,000 feet.<\/p>\n The rescuers spent about an hour and a half navigating trails so overgrown that crews needed machetes and chainsaws to clear a path through the vegetation.<\/p>\n With the hikers stranded in difficult terrain after dark, officials also called in some serious backup.<\/p>\n \u201cLasso 3,\u201d an MH-60S Seahawk search-and-rescue helicopter from Naval Air Station Lemoore, was dispatched to assist with the operation.<\/p>\n To find the lost hikers, seven sheriff\u2019s search-and-rescue members headed roughly 2.5 miles into Limekiln State Park through difficult terrain. Monterey County Sheriff’s Office<\/p>\n At around 12:30 a.m. Monday, five hours after the initial distress call, sheriff\u2019s rescuers finally located all three hikers.<\/p>\n The Navy crew then swooped in and hoisted the hikers from the wilderness, transporting them to a safe location where Big Sur Fire and ambulance personnel were waiting.<\/p>\n The harrowing rescue comes after a brutal summer for the Big Sur backcountry, where massive wildfires have recently ripped across tens of thousands of acres of steep, vegetation-choked terrain.<\/p>\n In August, roughly 1,000 firefighters battled the fast-moving Timber Fire<\/a> as flames threatened hundreds of structures, including homes near Partington Ridge Road.<\/p>\n The rescuers spent about an hour and a half navigating trails so overgrown that crews needed machetes and chainsaws to clear a path through the vegetation. Monterey County Sheriff’s Office<\/p>\n At around 12:30 a.m. Monday, five hours after the initial distress call, sheriff\u2019s rescuers finally located all three hikers. Monterey County Sheriff’s Office<\/p>\n