Incident:Fractured Foot in Illusions Canyon 2025/06/08
| Incident:Fractured Foot in Illusions Canyon 2025/06/08 | |
|---|---|
| Date | 2025/06/08 |
| Location | Illusions Canyon |
| Severity | Injury |
| Canyoneering-related | Yes
|
| SAR involvement | Yes
|
| Navigation problem | No
|
| Swift water problem | |
| Environmental problem | No
|
| Communication problem | No
|
| Planning problem | No
|
| Skills problem | No
|
| Body movement problem | Yes
|
| Rigging problem | No
|
| Rappel problem | No
|
| Insufficient gear | No
|
| Gear failure | No
|
Summary[edit]
While progressing through Illusions Canyon, a party member slipped off a 12’ tall ledge from a seated position, injuring their left foot, requiring an evacuation from the canyon by AZ DPS via hoist operation. The 3 remaining party members successfully hiked out unassisted.
Accounts[edit]
At approximately 1630 the subject slipped off a ledge from a seated position and fell approximately 12’ into a shallow pool of water within Illusions Canyon. Illusions Canyon has 13 established rappels, and the room containing the ledge was located between rappels 9 and 10. Party Members 2 and 3 were rigging rappel 10 while party member 4 waited for the subject in the next room, before rappel 10. Subject informed Party Member 4 they injured their foot, believing it to be broken, with visible deformity through their shoe and crepitus upon attempts to bear weight. Party member 4 assisted subject to rappel 10 where the entire team talked through the task at hand; to assist subject to a spot where heli-rescue may be possible, and to establish contact with SAR personnel through use of a Garmin InReach.
The team worked well together, assisting the subject through pools, downclimbs and rappels 10 & 11, reaching an opening within the canyon between rappels 11 and 12 at approximately 1720. The team changed out of their canyon gear to dry off, warm up, and provide aid. The subject was given 1000mg of acetaminophen, and 600mg of ibuprofen from party member 3 for pain & swelling control while an elastic bandage was applied over the subject’s neoprene sock to provide stabilization through compression by party member 2. Party member 4 was able to successfully contact Garmin’s SOS service, along with a Coordinator for Coconino County Sheriff’s SAR, and a member of Coconino County Sheriff's SAR who is the partner of Party Member 4.
Despite initial success using the Garmin InReach device for communication, a protracted period of roughly 1 hour occurred with no inbound or outbound messages being delivered. The team was unaware what resources may have been mobilized, and their potential ETA to the reported team location, so a decision was made to complete the remaining 2 rappels before sunset in case an overnight in the canyon would be required. The team was rigging rappel 13 when a helicopter was heard approaching their location. The subject had a SAR issued radio with them in the canyon which Party Member 2 used to communicate the team’s current location and ETA to the next potential site for a short haul or hoist extraction. AZ DPS’s Ranger 1 was able to successfully hoist the subject from the base of rappel 13, the final rappel in the canyon, at 1930. The 3 remaining party members divided the subject's gear among them and successfully hiked out of the drainage using the “sneak exit”; arriving back at their vehicle at approximately 2130.