December 11, 2012 - On Saturday 12/8/12, at 12:05 PM, the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue team in South Lake Tahoe responded to a report of an injured hiker on Mt. Tallac. Mt. Tallac is a 9,735 foot mountain, which sits just south of Emerald Bay. At the time of this call, Mt. Tallac was covered in ice and snow.
The injured hiker was Brian Meek (50 yrs) from Portland, Oregon who was hiking alone on the trail to the top of the mountain. Brian Meek was hiking in snowshoes, and he lost traction on the ice and began to slide and lost control. He slid over 400 feet down the mountainside in an area known as west bowl, and collided with a large rock. He sustained traumatic injuries including multiple compound fractures to his legs which required a rapid response from the Search and Rescue Team.
Rescue efforts were initiated using the El Dorado County Sheriff's Search and Rescue Team, Douglas County Sheriff's Search and Rescue Volunteers, CHP Air Operations, Lake Valley Fire Department and CALSTAR 6 helicopter. Due to the icy conditions helicopters were unable to land to effect the rescue. SAR rescuers had to be inserted and technical mountaineering skills were used to safely reach the victim and provide emergency trauma care. Brian Meek was hoisted out using the CHP helicopter, and then transferred to CALSTAR 6 helicopter. He was flown to Renown Medical Center in Reno for treatment.
This rescue effort was a cooperative effort between El Dorado County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue, Douglas County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue, Lake Valley Fire Department, CHP Air Operations, and CALSTAR 6. The El Dorado County Sheriff's Office wishes to thank all these agencies for their continued support.
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