A hiker trapped in quicksand in Utah for hours until rescuers can reach him and free him

February 18, 2019, 21:35 GMT

By Minyvonne Burke

A man hiking in a Utah national park found himself stuck in quicksand and remained trapped until late at night when rangers were able to reach him. and free him.

The unidentified hiker then stayed with the rescuers in the park during the night in freezing and snowy weather until visibility was high enough the next afternoon to airlift him to an ambulance. waiting.

Arizona, a 34-year-old hiker, was walking with a friend in Zion National Park on Saturday, as his leg was stuck in quicksand along North Creek's left fork, said Monday. the National Parks Service.

"His leg was buried up to the knee and he could not break free," officials said in a statement. "He and his companion tried to free his leg and failed."

The woman left the hiker with equipment and warm clothes, then walked for three hours until she could get a cell phone service and call 911.

The park's search and rescue team took several more hours to locate the man, the National Park Service announced.

When the rangers finally managed to join him, he suffered from exposure and hypothermia due to extreme cold and injury.

"Early in the night, the Rangers managed to free the male from the quicksand and began trying to warm him up again and heal his leg," said the park service.

Due to deteriorating weather conditions, rescuers decided that it was safer to spend the night in the park with the injured hiker. The man was flown out of the park and then taken to the hospital the following afternoon, park officials said.

A Parks Department spokesman told NBC News that quicksand is not usually a problem at Zion National Park.

"It happens if the conditions are good," she said. "Quicksand can form in loose sand saturated with stagnant water, if it is the right point of saturation, and you enter it and the water can not get into it. escape, it creates a liquefied soil that can not support the weight We were exceptionally wet here this winter The weather was probably a contributing factor. "