Blizzard traps unprepared hikers wearing tennis shoes and jeans, Colorado rescuers say

Rescuers saved two hikers after they were trapped in a blizzard on a Colorado mountain at nearly 12,800 feet, The Gazette reported.

The hikers got off-trail on Mount Elbert the evening of Nov. 7 when the blizzard hit, creating dangerous whiteout conditions, according to KCNC-TV. Chaffee County Search and Rescue and Lake County Search and Rescue responded to the call for help from the hikers, the two organizations said on Facebook.

“These gentlemen were lucky enough to have cell service the entire time and we were able to contact them regularly,” said Josh Adamson, a deputy with Lake County Office of Emergency Management, according to KDVR. “Stuck on a pretty steep face and they couldn’t move. Definitely a risky evening for us to even be out there.”

Rescuers spent several hours looking for the hikers and then assisting them down the mountain. By 5 a.m. on Nov. 8, the rescue teams got the hikers off the mountain and into the care of emergency medical staff, according to the Chaffee team’s Facebook post.

The hikers made a number of mistakes when venturing out on the trail, including leaving too late in the day and wearing improper hiking attire, according to KDVR.

“They had inadequate footwear, so they had tennis shoes. They were wearing wool socks. One of them was in jeans,” Adamson told the news outlet. “It could have been disastrous for them. I will say their odds of survival without us showing up were pretty low.”

One of the hikers had lost a shoe in the 20 degree weather while going down the mountain, county officials said.

The rescuers reminded future hikers that “the consequences for not being prepared are very high.” It’s important to check the weather conditions before embarking on a trek up a mountain, they said.