A hiker fell ill Thursday on a walking path near the Ramona Bowl, south of Hemet, requiring firefighters to rescue the victim and arrange for an emergency airlift to a hospital.
The “hiker down” call was received about 12:30 p.m. in the area of Quail and Ramona Bowl roads, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
The agency said sheriff’s deputies were the first to reach the location and encountered the hiker, whose identity was not released, in respiratory distress.
Firefighters arrived minutes later and rendered aid to the patient, immediately calling for a Mercy Air helicopter to retrieve the person from a makeshift landing zone in a field, according to reports from the scene.
Temperatures in the Hemet Valley were approaching 95 degrees as of 1 p.m.
It was unclear whether the heat and/or a pre-existing medical condition was to blame for the victim’s condition.
The helicopter was due to arrive at the location before 1:30 p.m.