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Maryland State Police Conduct Multiple Helicopter Hoist Rescues Across the State

Aviation crews used hoists when wooded shorelines, deep mud and rocky river locations made boat or ground access impossible.

Overview

  • State police aviation hoisted two people from Big Gunpowder Falls after the pair became stuck near the shoreline in mud and shallow water and were flown to a nearby elementary school for evaluation by Baltimore County EMS.
  • A separate hoist rescue removed three 18-year-old women from the muddy shallows of Skipton Creek on the Eastern Shore after their jet ski became stranded; all three were evaluated on scene and reported uninjured.
  • At Swallow Falls State Park a rescue technician was lowered to rocks in Muddy Creek Falls to prepare a person who had fallen for aerial extraction and the patient was transported to a local hospital for treatment.
  • In each case crews hovered above tree cover and lowered rescue baskets, trail lines or technicians because boats and ground teams could not reach the victims due to shallow water, soft mud, heavy woods or river rocks.
  • Maryland State Police aviation handles hundreds of missions a year and officials say aerial hoists are used when speed and access are critical during the busy spring and summer rescue season.