Daring Helicopter Rescue on Vertical Rock Face in Yosemite Caught on Video

The massive rock faces of Yosemite National Park are some of the most popular rock climbing destinations in the world. But because of the popularity, park officials are continuously dealing with dangerous situations to save climbers on dangerous rock walls.

One of those daring rescues was recently caught on video, showing the danger that rock climbers and safety officials face in these situations.




The CHP – Central Division Air Operations posted a video of a difficult rock climber rescue on Mount Watkins in the park. The climber, 39-year-old Vincent Worth from Colorado, fell 50 feet before his safety rope saved him, suffering a serious extremity injury in the process. The helicopter crew, consisting Yosemite SAR Helicopter Rescue Technician Jack Hoeflich, CHP Pilot Officer Scott Rodda, and CHP Flight Officer/Paramedic Mike Crain, performed the extraction of the climber on October 27. 

Here is the video from the rescue:

https://www.facebook.com/CHPCentralDivisionAirOps/videos/1063100200518721/




In the video, you can see how the helicopter is unable to hover directly over the climber due to the sheer verticality of the rock face. So the helicopter had to turn sideways in order to successfully reach the climber and hook him up to the helicopter and lift him to safety. The CHP Air Operations trains regularly with Yosemite SAR in high angle rescue and is well prepared for difficult missions in this challenging environment.

A big thanks to air operations teams who are always ready to save outdoor enthusiasts in dangerous situations!

Active NorCal

Telling the Stories of Northern California

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Back to top button