STUCK SNOWMOBILE RIDER RESCUED

STUCK SNOWMOBILE RIDER RESCUED

Released by:              Sgt. Nathan Garibay, Emergency Services Manager/Assistant SAR Coordinator

Release Date:             02-22-2019

Location:                    Deschutes National Forest; Southeast of Mt. Bachelor

Reporting Person:     Stephanie Boni

Rescued:                     Patrick Boni, 38 yrs

                                    Bend, OR

NARRATIVE:

On 02-22-2019, at about 1:06 AM, Deschutes County 911 received a call from Stephanie Boni reporting that her husband, Patrick Boni, was stuck in the snow somewhere in the area of Mt. Bachelor and was possibly in distress.  Boni had departed in the afternoon on 01-21-19 and got stuck while on his way back to his vehicle.

Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue and patrol deputies attempted to pinpoint Boni’s location and determined a probable location Southeast of Mt. Bachelor.  Mt. Bachelor operations staff in a snow cat assisted in locating where Boni’s snowmobile tracks left the groomed catch line. An AirLink helicopter was able spot Boni’s helmet light and confirm Boni’s location.  Boni was stuck in waist deep snow approximately 500 feet down a drainage from the catch line in timber.

Eleven SAR volunteers deployed to the field from Sunrise Lodge at Mt. Bachelor and were supported by two SAR Air Operations volunteers, 2 Incident Management Team volunteers, and two deputies.  SAR volunteers snowmobiled as close as they could to Boni and then traveled via snowshoe downhill into the drainage.  They made contact with Boni and began warming him.  Boni was provided snowshoes and was able to snowshoe back to the catch line with assistance and then transported to Mt. Bachelor by snow cat, arriving by 7:30 AM.  Boni was evaluated by a Basic Life Support SAR medic and then the medical clinic at Mt. Bachelor.  He opted out of further medical care.

Boni is an experienced rider and was equipped for the conditions with appropriate clothing and a pack with some supplies, but the extreme cold weather with sub-zero temperatures can quickly cause cold related injuries.  We encourage backcountry adventurers to take adequate supplies in case they get lost or stuck, inform someone of their travel plans, and to consider not traveling alone.

The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office is a full service agency providing patrol, criminal investigations, jail operations, civil and search and rescue. Special operations include SWAT, Marine Patrol, ATV Patrol, Forest Patrol, along with four K9 units. Founded in 1916 and today lead by your duly elected Sheriff L. Shane Nelson, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office serves the nearly 190,000 residents in Deschutes County. The agency has 230 authorized and funded personnel, which includes 187 sworn employees who provide services to the 3,055 square miles of Deschutes County.

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