Trapped Eaton Canyon Hikers Airlifted to Safety

A man and a woman who got trapped on a cliff while hiking in the mountains north of Altadena near Eaton Canyon were airlifted to safety on Monday, police said.

The couple was rescued by a helicopter around 11 a.m., brought down to the ground and taken to their vehicle, said Watch Deputy Cliver of the Altadena Sheriff’s Department.

The hikers were found uninjured and hoisted onto the helicopter as there was no place on the cliff for the chopper to land, according to Lieutenant Randy Tuinstra of the Altadena Sheriff’s Department.

According to Tuinstra, the Department of Forestry will investigate whether the hikers were trespassing in a restricted area or not.

The pair initially got trapped on Sunday night around 8 p.m., prompting them to contact law enforcement officials to request assistance near the canyon’s second waterfall, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Dan Paige.

Despite seeing the hikers 1,000 feet on a cliff above the canyon, authorities were unable to reach them Sunday night due to dark and rainy conditions, which carried over to early Monday morning, Paige said.

“Crews were working until about 1 a.m. trying to get into their location, it was just too rugged, they’re totally off any trails,” Paige said. “Tried the helicopter last night before the rain, they weren’t able to get in.”

According to Paige, an earlier attempt Monday morning to reach them via helicopter also failed because of the rain.