A rescue operation was mounted Thursday south of Hemet, where two hikers were injured and left stranded on a trail in a remote canyon amid scorching heat.
The “hiker down” call was received about 1:30 p.m. in Simpson Park, southeast of the Ramona Bowl, in rugged terrain, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
An agency spokeswoman said that two adults, whose identities were not released, called for help after one of them suffered unspecified injuries to the lower extremities, and the other fell ill for unknown reasons.
Temperatures in the area were in the mid-90s.
Multiple engine crews were sent to the location and established a staging area at the entrance to the park, then called on the sheriff’s STAR-9 helicopter crew, based at Hemet-Ryan Airport, to assist with locating and ferrying the victims to where ambulances could retrieve them, according to officials at the scene.
The helicopter crew spotted the hikers about 2:15 p.m. but returned to the airport to configure a hoist to carry them. The rescue operation was expected to be completed before 3 p.m.