On Saturday, November 14, 2015 at approximately 6:06 p.m., the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call from a female reporting that she had become lost while hiking in the Muggins Wilderness area outside of Wellton, AZ. The caller also reported that she had two canines with her, one of which was injured.
YCSO deputies, along with two U.S. Border Patrol agents assigned to the Wellton Station, responded to the area. Using the caller’s cell phone tracking system, a general location of her whereabouts was obtained. When the deputies and USBP agents arrived, they quickly realized that the caller was in an area that was inaccessible by vehicle. The USBP agents and a deputy hiked approximately two miles through rugged terrain to reach the female and her animals. A second deputy that responded to the area remained on the phone with the female during the incident until help arrived.
The YCSO contacted the Yuma Marine Corps Air Station Search and Rescue Unit for assistance. The Yuma MCAS SAR responded to the area and airlifted the female, her two canines and the responding law enforcement officers to a safe location.
Sheriff Leon Wilmot stated, “Once again this shows the outstanding collaboration with our local federal partners to accomplish a complicated mission by providing additional resources and manpower.”