Tin Man
06-01-2006, 23:10
From Times Community Newspaper (http://www.zwire.com/site/tab3.cfm?newsid=16717668&BRD=2553&PAG=461&dept_id=506078&rfi=6)
An Alexandria woman was uninjured last weekend when she got lost hiking on the mountain.
Local rescue volunteers began searching for 55-year-old Anna Rubin after sunset Sunday until they found her on the Appalachian Trail near the West Virginia line at almost 1 a.m., Monday.
“She did a very smart thing. She sat down and waited for daylight or to be rescued,” said Jason Burns, fire chief for Blue Ridge Volunteer Fire & Rescue Co.
The hiker was visiting Bear’s Den Hostel on Route 601 with a group from her church. She went off alone for a hike and it got dark before she could get back, Burns said.
Clarke County 911 dispatch said the call came from Bear’s Den at 8:24 p.m., when her party became alarmed that Rubin had not yet returned.
Clarke County Sheriff’s Department, Virginia State Police, Mt. Weather emergency personnel, Blue Ridge Volunteer Fire & Rescue Co., and Top of Virginia Search & Rescue responded to the call for help on the mountain.
Rescuers split up into two parties to go with flashlights both north and south up and down the Appalachian Trail to comb the woods, Burns said.
The group of Blue Ridge volunteers and Mt. Weather FEMA rescuers found the hiker just before a Top of Virginia dog team was deployed that night.
Burns said the hiker was fine. “She was more worried about her group worrying about her,” he said.
Sheriff Tony Roper said Tuesday “these emergency responders did a wonderful job.”
“Most of them are volunteers,” he noted.
“Folks need to recognize they need to plan these things (hikes on the mountain) in advance. She (the lost hiker) tried to cover too much territory,” Roper said.
An Alexandria woman was uninjured last weekend when she got lost hiking on the mountain.
Local rescue volunteers began searching for 55-year-old Anna Rubin after sunset Sunday until they found her on the Appalachian Trail near the West Virginia line at almost 1 a.m., Monday.
“She did a very smart thing. She sat down and waited for daylight or to be rescued,” said Jason Burns, fire chief for Blue Ridge Volunteer Fire & Rescue Co.
The hiker was visiting Bear’s Den Hostel on Route 601 with a group from her church. She went off alone for a hike and it got dark before she could get back, Burns said.
Clarke County 911 dispatch said the call came from Bear’s Den at 8:24 p.m., when her party became alarmed that Rubin had not yet returned.
Clarke County Sheriff’s Department, Virginia State Police, Mt. Weather emergency personnel, Blue Ridge Volunteer Fire & Rescue Co., and Top of Virginia Search & Rescue responded to the call for help on the mountain.
Rescuers split up into two parties to go with flashlights both north and south up and down the Appalachian Trail to comb the woods, Burns said.
The group of Blue Ridge volunteers and Mt. Weather FEMA rescuers found the hiker just before a Top of Virginia dog team was deployed that night.
Burns said the hiker was fine. “She was more worried about her group worrying about her,” he said.
Sheriff Tony Roper said Tuesday “these emergency responders did a wonderful job.”
“Most of them are volunteers,” he noted.
“Folks need to recognize they need to plan these things (hikes on the mountain) in advance. She (the lost hiker) tried to cover too much territory,” Roper said.