At approximately 9:08 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 15, Klickitat County Emergency Management (KCDEM) 9-1-1/dispatch received a 9-1-1 call from a High Prairie resident reporting that her husband was having a medical emergency.
KCDEM Communications Officers dispatched a Klickitat County Emergency Medical Services (KCEMS) District ambulance and Klickitat County Fire District (KCFD) #14 EMS and firefighter volunteers to the address on a private road off of Schilling Road in the High Prairie area of central Klickitat County.
Upon arrival at the private gravel road KCFD #14 responders found it unplowed and were unable to proceed due to deep snow conditions.
A Klickitat County Public Works Department road grader was dispatched to the scene and plowed the gravel road.
The residence was still an additional half mile on a primitive dirt road that was not able to be plowed.
The KCFD #14 Fire Chief requested that Klickitat County Sheriff’s Office Search & Rescue (KCSAR) team be dispatched to respond with its tracked side by side all-terrain vehicle.
KCFD #14 and KCEMS responders continued to the residence on foot through approximately three feet of snow and white out conditions for about a half mile to provide patient care. Â
The KCSAR team arrived and deployed the tracked side by side to the residence transporting the patient, medical equipment and KCEMS Paramedic to the ambulance waiting on Schilling road.
As a result of the multiple agency coordination, use of specialized equipment and the dedication of our county emergency responders the patient was rescued and transported to the hospital under very difficult weather conditions.
