A teenage tramper was winched to safety in high winds on Mt Karioi, late on Thursday afternoon. The 14-year-old female suffered a leg injury while tramping with a school group.
The teenage girl activated a location beacon at 4.15pm, and the Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter was alerted.
Intensive care flight paramedic Russell Clarke was winched onto the track in high winds. The tramper was then winched to safety and taken to Middlemore Hospital suffering from a minor injury. Clarke praised the group for being prepared saying, “This group did everything right. They had a PLB (personal locator beacon) which they had activated. This got picked up by satellite, which alerted the RCC (Rescue Coordination Centre) in Wellington of their situation and location. It also meant that the RCC knew it was a school group, because the PLB was registered to them. Then, when they heard us approaching, they let off some flares so that we could locate them quickly.”