EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14\/CBS4) \u2014 An injured hiker was rescued from steep terrain in Franklin Mountains State Park over the weekend after a late-night operation involving U.S. Customs and Border Protection air crews, U.S. Border Patrol agents and El Paso\u2019s Combined Search and Rescue Team.<\/p>\n
According to CBP El Paso, on Saturday, Aug. 15, at 9:30 p.m., CBP Air and Marine Operations received a call to assist El Paso Fire Department personnel with the Combined Search and Rescue Team, who were treating an injured man who had fallen and injured himself during a hiking trip. <\/p>\n
Officials said the terrain was too steep for the COMSAR team to safely transport the patient out of the mountains.<\/p>\n
After receiving the request from El Paso COMSAR, an off-duty AMO UH-60 Black Hawk crew was called to assist. The aircrew coordinated with El Paso Sector Border Patrol Special Operations Detachment and COMSAR to reach the patient in a remote, high-altitude area.<\/p>\n
Using night vision goggles in challenging mountainous terrain, the aircrew executed multiple precision hoist iterations from more than 90 feet to deploy an AMO rescue specialist and two Special Operations Detachment Border Patrol Tactical Unit agents, officials said.<\/p>\n
According to CBP officials, the man, who was suffering from multiple injuries, was stabilized and transported to El Paso University Medical Center.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur collaboration with COMSAR resulted in a successful rescue,\u201d said Director Efren Gonzalez of AMO El Paso Air Branch. \u201cI am proud of our aircrew and agents.\u201d<\/p>\n
CBP and El Paso COMSAR regularly train and operate together for rescue missions in the rough, mountainous, and desert terrain of West Texas, officials said. <\/p>\n
WATCH: <\/p>\n
Injured hiker rescued from Franklin Mountains, airlifted to hospital (Credit: CBP El Paso)<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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