Border agents rescue injured hiker in Texas with Black Hawk helicopter
CBP Black Hawk aircrew assisted with rescue.
EL PASO, Texas - A hiker at a Texas state park is recovering after being rescued by a U.S. Customs and Border Protection team in a Black Hawk helicopter.
CBP helicopter rescue
What we know:
CBP was called for assistance at Franklin Mountains State Park on Feb. 19, where the El Paso Police Department and El Paso Fire Department Combined Search and Rescue team were operating a challenging rescue mission.
The department said in a Wednesday release that they were informed around 9:45 a.m. that a 21-year-old hiker had fallen about 150 feet from the Mammoth Rock Trail and had taken severe injuries, including a broken knee. Because of the terrain where he'd fallen, local teams couldn't reach him in time with ground equipment.
Due to terrain, ground evacuation wasn't feasible.
CBP launched a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter and aircrew to assist with the operation. Once they found the hiker, the release says they conducted a 250-foot hoist operation and evacuated the injured man from the mountainside.
The man was taken to a Level 1 trauma center for advanced medical care, they said.
What we don't know:
The identity of the hiker was not released.
The Source: Information in this article comes from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.