On Saturday, August 3rd, around 11:00 AM, the Albuquerque Fire Rescue’s Heavy Technical Rescue Team (HTR) was dispatched to the Sandia Crest Nature Trailhead for a wilderness rescue operation. A climber had fallen down a cliff and sustained significant injuries. Multiple agencies, including AFR, Albuquerque Police Department, Bernalillo County Fire Rescue, Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, New Mexico State Police, Albuquerque Mountain Rescue, Cibola Rescue, UNMH EMS Consortium, Army National Guard, and New Mexico State Police SAR, responded to assist.
By 11:02 AM, AFR’s HTR1 and Team 1 made visual contact with the injured climber. By 11:44 AM, the rescue team reached the patient. Because the climber’s injuries were severe, the rescue team requested an air medical evacuation.
AFR reported that the National Guard’s Lobo1 responded from the Socorro region. By 12:50 PM, the helicopter was hovering above the patient and ground teams. At 1:05 PM, rescuers successfully hoisted the climber into a Stokes rescue basket and transported them to UNMH ER in Albuquerque for treatment. The extent of the climber’s injuries or their condition are unknown.
There were no injuries to the rescuers.
If we learn more about the climber or their condition, we will update this story.