Routt County Search and Rescue received over 50 calls for service, saving eight lives between January and October this year, according to a newsletter published by the organization.

Out of the 52 calls for service in that time period, search and rescue crews responded to 32 “fieldable incidents,” which are missions that require a physical response, totaling 1,485 hours spent on service.

The October newsletter highlights seven major incidents between July and September.

On July 1, search and rescue crews were dispatched to help an injured hiker on the Uranium Mine Trail at Fish Creek Falls. Steamboat Springs Fire Rescue paramedics stabilized the patient before search and rescue team members worked to “package the patient in a vacuum mattress and load them into the wheeled stokes for transport,” states the newsletter.

Later that month, Routt County Search and Rescue assisted in a Jackson County Search and Rescue mission to locate a man experiencing a mental health crisis.

The 22-year-old, Derek Pettigrew, was last seen on July 15 and was believed to be armed, according to a July statement from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.

Routt County Search and Rescue joined dog teams from other counties, Colorado Parks and Wildlife officers, Jackson County sheriff’s deputies, and Jackson County Search and Rescue in searching for Pettigrew.

“Sadly, the individual is still missing. Our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time,” the newsletter noted.

On Sept. 5, Routt County Search and Rescue team members responded to a page regarding a missing hunter in North Routt County. According to the newsletter, the hunter had not contacted his family the night prior.

Five team members were dispatched to search the area near the hunter’s camp, states the newsletter. Although the hunter’s truck was at the camp, the hunter’s off-highway vehicle was not on the scene.

After coordinating with Carbon County Search and Rescue teams in Wyoming to deploy a thermal imaging aircraft, a U.S. Forest Service officer located the hunter’s off-highway vehicle at a different camp location. The hunter was reported to have made it back to the camp safely just after 8 p.m.

On Sept. 12, Routt County Search and Rescue was paged around 3 p.m. for a hunter having a “medical emergency” in the backcountry just south of Rabbit Ears Pass, states the newsletter.

Law enforcement officers with the Forest Service and CPW responded to the call, reaching the injured hunter by 5 p.m. Routt County Search and Rescue sent two EMTs and a Steamboat Springs Fire Rescue paramedic to the scene who arrived roughly 20 minutes after law enforcement.

Five more search and rescue team members hiked to the scene with extra rescue gear. The crew prepared for a “difficult extraction” but were eventually able to dispatch Classic Air Medical after weather conditions improved. After transporting the patient, all search and rescue team members were out of the field by 10:45 p.m.

The next day, search and rescue team members were called to search for another missing hunter in North Routt after one hunter in a party of three did not return to a designated rendezvous point.

Search and rescue sent three team members to search for the hunter and later collaborated with Colorado Search and Rescue on cell phone forensics.

Overnight, one search and rescue member joined Routt County sheriff’s deputies and members of the North Routt Fire Protection District as the officials flew drones over the area. 

The following morning, Routt County Search and Rescue sent out  K-9 to search for the hunter. Several hours later, Classic Air Medical deployed its Steamboat-based helicopter.

About 26 hours after the hunter went missing, he “found his way to road, tired but uninjured, and was given a ride back to the staging area by some fellow hunters,” states the newsletter.

On Sept. 23, Jackson County Search and Rescue paged Routt C3w3ounty Search and Rescue for assistance with a search for a hunter lost in the Raway Wilderness.

The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office stated that on the evening of Sept. 22, deputies were notified that a hunter had gone missing near the Jack Dickens Trail off Jackson County Road 12E, close to the Three Sisters Trailhead.

The missing hunter, a 57-year-old man from Illinois, had previous military experience, the reporting party told the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.

The last communication the reporting party had received from the man was a text message at 3:21 p.m., indicating he was lost, the sheriff’s office stated. However, he was well-prepared with warm clothes, water and a sleeping bag.

First responders from nearly 20 agencies faced snow and winter-like storm conditions during the mission before successfully finding the hunter on the afternoon of Sept. 24.

The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office stated it was grateful to all the agencies that assisted in this successful search and rescue effort, including Routt County Search and Rescue, Grand County agencies, Front Range Rescue Dogs and many others. Grand County Search and Rescue and the Grand County Sheriff’s Office also assisted during this multiagency mission.

On Sept. 30, Routt County Search and Rescue members were called to help an injured mountain biker on the Swamp Park Trail near the Mount Zirkel Wilderness boundary.

Four search and rescue team members and an EMT responded to the call, along with members of the North Routt Fire Protection District on ATVs. A Steamboat Springs Fire Rescue paramedic was also called to the scene after assessing the biker’s condition.

After being transported in a vacuum mattress on wheeled stokes, Classic Air Medical picked up the biker and took him to a trauma center.

To donate to Routt County Search and Rescue, visit TinyUrl.com/2w5bw688.