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November 16, 2009 in City
Searchers credited with finding injured hiker
With temperatures in the 20s, hypothermia began to set in
Volunteer searchers are being credited for locating a missing hiker early Sunday after she broke her ankle along a Riverside State Park trail.
Toni Sneva was found about 4 a.m. Sunday after she failed to show up for a hockey game in Spokane on Saturday night, police said.
Family members called the Spokane Police Department, and officers checked locations where she might have gone. A friend found her vehicle near Nine Mile Falls Dam.
A search over three square miles included a sheriff’s helicopter, 30 volunteers, the American Red Cross, medical personnel and Liberty Lake police. A school at Nine Mile was used as a command post.
Sneva, who was wearing lightweight clothing, had injured her ankle and became unable to walk during an afternoon hike. Her cell phone could not make a connection. As the temperature dipped into the 20s, hypothermia began to set in, police said. Sneva sat next to a tree for protection from wind. She threw a bag and an empty juice container toward a nearby trail.
A searcher on an all-terrain vehicle spotted the bag, looked around the area and found Sneva.
Spokane Police Officer Brian Eckersley said in a press release that she might not have survived without the search effort.
Officials said hikers always should carry enough clothing, food and water to survive overnight conditions. A small flashlight and fire starter are recommended. Also, it’s important to tell someone where you are going and when you will return, they said.
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Fixer on November 16 at 9:19 a.m.
Liberty Lake police?
mikep on November 16 at 9:54 a.m.
Local law enforcement frequently shares officers and resources, and in this case, a Liberty Lake officer responded with night vision and infrared devices to help out, according to a spokeswoman at the Liberty Lake PD.
Pilewort54 on November 16 at 9:57 p.m.
Didn’t Toni Sneva not long ago receive a special citation from the marshals or FBI as “G-Man.” If I remember correctly, she was the first female so honored.