The Greenlea Rescue Helicopter was dispatched to Mt Tongariro early on the morning of Thursday 30 May. A call had been received from a distressed hiker who’s companion had slipped on ice on a ridge line and disappeared over an edge out of sight.
Initially, she was unable to ascertain if her friend was still alive as there was no response to her calls. Eventually, her friend responded, as it appears may have lost consciousness for a period of time after the fall was able to respond.
The Greenlea Rescue Helicopter quickly establish the exact location of the injured party and responded with an Alpine Rescue Team. A full alpine response was required to safely extract the injured woman and to assist her friend who was still perched in peril the edge of the same icy ridge from which her friend fell.
With the help of crampons and ice axes, LandSAR and Ruapehu Alpine Rescue personnel were able to safely anchor the uninjured woman on the bulletproof ice, for a helicopter hover extraction, while medical assistance was given to the injured woman. The injured hiker was flown to Rotorua Hospital for further treatment.
