A hiker who entered a closed area had to call for rescue after finding himself surrounded by rocks on three sides and a landmine on the fourth.
Satellite view of the Ferris Fire, Gold Mountain Fire and Aspen Acres Fire in Colorado, as well as the Babylon Fire in Utah, where thousands of acres have burned. (Photo: Gallo Images/Contributor via Getty)
Published on July 8, 2026 11:51 am
A hiker entering an area closed due to Colorado’s Gold Mountain Fire had to be rescued after getting stuck on a steep cliff late last month.
The day before the rescue of the hikers, a fire broke out in Gold Mountain, which grew rapidly. Initially, the Ouray County Sheriff’s Office reported the cause of fire as a tree that fell on a power lineBut later amended his statement and said that the cause of the fire is being investigated.
Since then the fire has increased even more 31,000 acres With 8% containment in size, road closures, mandatory evacuations, and a large multi-agency fire response across parts of Gunnison and Ouray counties as it threatened homes, infrastructure, and public lands. at least 900 firefighters Currently assigned to FIRE.
On June 28, pedestrians were walking near County Road 14B when they hit an obstacle they could not bypass.
“A landmine blocked their way to the top, while steep walls stood on either side,” the Ore Mountain Rescue Team (OMRT) said. ExplainedDue to which the pedestrian is left with no safe way to climb up or down.
Officials routinely restrict access to active fire areas to protect both the public and emergency personnel from rapidly changing conditions. Factors such as smoke and changing winds can drastically change the scale and impact of a wildfire within minutes. Due to the blazing wildfire, rescue teams consulted with fire command before entering the area to locate the hiker.
Once the crew established voice contact with the hiker, SAR personnel deployed a double-rope system to safely remove them from the steep terrain. “A attendant was lowered into the drain, the person was secured in a harness and the team pulled them safely to the road,” rescue workers said.
On Monday, Rocky Mountain Complex Incident Management Team 3, a federal team, took over management of the fire. Fire incident commander, Casey Cheesebrough, Explained to community members The unique circumstances of the fire are making for a lengthy operation.
“It’s going to be a long haul,” Cheesbrough said.
Local rescue teams are urging hikers to be aware of the current fire closure conditions before venturing into the mountains. “We urge the public to respect all posted restrictions – disregarding them puts our responders at unnecessary risk,” OMRT said.
