Emergency crews were dispatched to help an injured hiker Sunday morning near Inspiration Point above Mission Canyon.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Drew Sugars said personnel from the county and Santa Barbara fire departments and the all-volunteer Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team responded to a 9-1-1 call reporting an injured hiker at 9 a.m. Sunday. The hiker, a Santa Barbara woman in her 30s, was located about 1½ miles up the trail from Tunnel Road, just below Inspiration Point.
Sugars said the woman, whom he did not identify, told authorities she was hiking down from Inspiration Point when she slipped on loose dirt and fell hard on her ankle. He said the woman’s hiking companions tried to carry her down the trail but were unable to adequately help her so they called 9-1-1.
Medical and search and rescue personnel put a splint on the woman’s ankle and carried her down the trail on a wheeled stretcher. An American Medical Response ambulance transported her to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital for further treatment. Her condition is not known.
Sugars said the search and rescue team wanted to remind hikers to make sure they are physically fit and have proper, sturdy footwear when venturing out on backcountry trails. As a result of recent fires, a lot of loose dirt has washed down, causing slippery footing along trails.
— Noozhawk publisher Bill Macfadyen can be reached at wmacfadyen@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk.