Climbing North Apostle Mountain, an off-duty first responder freed his own fractured leg from a huge dislocated rock before a complex iPhone-facilitated Black Hawk Rescue took off.
Views of the Sawtooth Range in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, located in central Colorado (Photo: Nick1803/Getty Images)
Published July 7, 2026 02:32 pm
An off-duty firefighter escaped with his life after being crushed under a 400-pound boulder while climbing a remote mountain in Colorado. The firefighter, who has not been identified, had no cell service and suffered a broken leg. Rescuers said they used “primal adrenaline” to survive the ordeal.
On the morning of July 1, a firefighter from the Eagle River Fire Protection District near Vail was climbing into a saddle at an elevation of 13,400 feet. North Apostle Mountains And snow mountains. The saddle is located in the Sawtooth Range southeast of Aspen, Colorado. As soon as the person started scuffling trail, He dislodged a 400-pound stone, which rolled onto his foot, instantly breaking his leg.
The firefighter’s quick thinking and technical understanding likely saved his life – he managed to remove the rock from his trapped foot and crawl to another location to call for help.
“Through incredible determination – and what some described as “primal adrenaline” – they were able to free themselves. Knowing that their injuries were serious, they activated an emergency call for help,” the firefighter’s company wrote. statement.
In May, a climber was buried under a 16,000-pound boulder on Oregon’s Mount Hood, and news reports indicate that search and rescue teams Remove a handful of pinned people Every year in America.
In this remote part of the Colorado wilderness, cell reception is spotty. The firefighter also deployed his iPhone’s emergency SOS via the satellite feature, alerting Chaffee County dispatchers to his GPS coordinates.
Officials say Chaffee County Search and Rescue North initiated the ground response. But the rugged terrain, severity of the trauma and the extreme 13,000-foot altitude meant that rescuers needed transport to reach the stricken climber. Dispatchers requested a military helicopter hoist from the High-Altitude Army Aviation Training Site (HAATS) in nearby Gypsum. As the only school in the Department of Defense dedicated to preparing crews for challenging mountain environments, HAATS trains high-altitude military helicopter pilots.
Eagle River wrote, “His professionalism and skill are truly second to none.” Mountain Rescue Aspen deployed two technical rescuers from its hoist team, whose expertise has been instrumental in countless high-angle and alpine rescues across Colorado.
Responders said that while waiting for rescue, the firefighter remained in contact with a member of Vail Mountain Rescue through the iPhone satellite texting feature. He was able to provide vital information to the rescue helicopter crew, including location, injuries and terrain conditions. The teams also deployed ground crews if helicopters could not reach the scene due to weather or terrain.
The helicopter pilot, who was flying the last flight of his military career, reached the spot at 5:25 pm and successfully executed a 300-foot technical flight in high winds.
Eagle River wrote, “After assessing the landing zone, the crew inserted two Mountain Rescue Aspen technicians onto a 300-foot high hoist line. They immediately splinted the broken leg, packed up our firefighters and loaded them safely into the plane for transport.”
Other responding agencies included Mountain Rescue Aspen, Chaffee County EMS, Vail Health Emergency Department, Eagle Valley Wildland and Eagle County Airport Fire Rescue.
Eagle River wrote, “Incidents like this are a powerful reminder that even people who dedicate their lives to helping others sometimes need help themselves.” “It is a fitting tribute to a career spent serving others.”
After completing the mission, the helicopter pilot received the traditional military honor: a water cannon salute over the helicopter.
