U.S. Coast Guard Helicopter Rescues Injured Rafter from Remote Rogue River
Injured rafter uses satellite communication device to call for help in Wild and Scenic Rogue River
GALICE, Ore. — An injured rafter was flown from a remote section of the Rogue River to an area hospital Sunday evening after the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office called on the U.S. Coast Guard for help reaching the difficult-to-access location.
Emergency dispatchers received a report at about 4:57 p.m. July 20 that a rafter had suffered a severe leg injury in the Wild and Scenic section of the Rogue River west of Galice.
Rescuers assist an injured rafter along the Wild and Scenic Rogue River west of Galice on July 20. Photo courtesy Josephine County Sheriff’s Office
There was no cell service in the area.
Instead, information about the emergency was being sent by text through a Garmin satellite GPS device, allowing rescuers to communicate despite the remote location.
Because of where the injured rafter was located, sheriff’s officials determined that ground-based search and rescue crews or other responders traveling by river could take a significant amount of time to reach the scene.
The Josephine County Sheriff’s Office contacted the U.S. Coast Guard in North Bend, which was able to launch a rescue helicopter.
The helicopter reached the area and landed nearby. Rescuers provided initial medical care before flying the injured rafter to an area hospital for further evaluation and treatment.
The sheriff’s office did not release additional information about the person’s condition.
The rescue highlights one of the challenges of traveling through the Wild and Scenic Rogue River corridor, where steep terrain and limited or nonexistent cell coverage can make even a routine emergency much harder to reach.
In this case, the Garmin device provided an alternate way to communicate with emergency dispatchers while help was being coordinated.
The Josephine County Sheriff’s Office thanked the U.S. Coast Guard for its assistance and reminded people heading into remote areas to prepare for emergencies, carry an alternate form of communication when cell service may not be available, and share their planned route and expected return time with someone before leaving.
Cover Image: File photo - A U.S. Coast Guard Sector North Bend MH-65 Dolphin helicopter during a previous training operation in Southern Oregon. U.S. Air National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Penny Snoozy
