PLSAR rescues stranded UTV riders

CLARK FORK — Six people were escorted to safety on New Year’s Day after their all-terrain vehicles became mired in deep snow in the Coeur d’Alene Mountains overlooking Lake Pend Oreille, according to Priest Lake Search & Rescue.

The Bonner County Sheriff’s Office was alerted shortly before midnight on New Year’s Eve that the group was stranded somewhere between Lakeview and Clark Fork, a broad area running along southeastern shore of the lake.

The group, which was in phone contact with authorities, reported that they were attempting to ascend a steep hill in a track-mounted utility terrain vehicles using a winch, but said they were running low on fuel and oil, a PLSAR news release said. A member of the group reported having a respiratory issue, but they waved off an offer to be extricated by helicopter, search and rescue officials said.

PLSAR team leaders established a command post at the Bonner County Emergency Operations Center in Sandpoint and five members were dispatched in three snowmobiles and one tracked UTV. Initial efforts to reach the group using U.S. Forest Service Road No. 332 were thwarted by downed trees, prompting rescuers to double back and reroute to Road No. 278 in the Johnson Creek drainage, which greatly extended the time it took to find the stranded group because darkness and blowing snow.

Search teams located the group shortly before 7 a.m. on Sunday. The group managed to extricate themselves and used their machines sparingly to keep warm, but didn’t have enough fuel to make it back to the Gold Creek Lodge south of Lakeview. Search teams provided the group with the necessary fuel and escorted them back to the lodge.

“Local Lakeview residents were extremely helpful in providing additional fuel and a warming hut for the searchers,” PLSAR Commander Mike Nielsen said.

In all, searchers logged 118 miles on their snowmobiles and the UTV during the rescue operation.

Information: www.plsar.com