A woman hiking on Cowles Mountain Saturday morning had to be airlifted off the trail after she fell and hurt her ankle near the top of the summit.
The call came in to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department (SDFD) just before 8 a.m. SDFD units and a helicopter responded to the mountain, located at Golfcrest Drive and Navajo Road in San Diego's East County. Officials had to determine how to safely get the hiker off the trail.
About a half-hour later, the woman was airlifted from the mountain and then taken to a local hospital.
According to Monica Munoz, public information officer for SDFD, these types of incidents commonly happen when hiking – that’s why SDFD highly recommends hiking with a buddy.
This wasn’t the only rescue of a hiker in San Diego on Saturday.
Just before noon, SDFD crews were called to help another hiker in distress in Black Mountain Ranch. The hiker was suffering from heat exhaustion. Units performed an open space rescue just a mile up the trail.
