After being stuck near a Park District waterfall with her dog, a woman has expressed gratitude to a mountain rescue crew.
The Kinder Mountain Rescue Team Volunteers spent seven hours rescuing them from near the Kinder Downfall.
Kai, a four-year-old Saluki, was saved from a ledge above a 164-foot (50-meter) drop.
“We are certain that we saved two lives that night, not just one,” the rescue team said.
On April 27, the 26-year-old dog walker, who has requested anonymity, was out for a walk with her four dogs close to Kinder Scout‘s peak when she saw Kai had descended into a ledge.
Before calling mountain rescue, the woman tried to get hold of Kai for several hours.
As the weather worsened, she gathered her other three pets and waited for assistance.
She stated:
“I kept telling him (Kai): ‘I’m coming. I’ll get to you.’”
“I got to these rocks, and I was looking at him thinking, ‘I’m so close to him.’ But if I fall, all of them are stuck because no one is coming for them.
I just curled myself around the dogs and kept shouting to Kai to say I was still there and wouldn’t leave him.”
Kinder Mountain Rescue Team Was Able to Reach Kai
Kinder Mountain Rescue Team said the woman was “quite hypothermic” when they found her.
Using a rope, rescuers were able to get to Kai.
“I can’t ever repay them. I could give them everything I have, which wouldn’t be enough.”
The Kinder Mountain Team's deputy team leader, Alan Howarth, described the rescue as a challenging operation.
“After carefully assessing the terrain and the situation, we implemented a full rope rescue to retrieve the dog.
“This involved the whole team carrying a significant amount of equipment to the Downfall and rigging it in the dark.
She did absolutely the right thing in calling for help, and we are certain that we saved two lives that night, not just one.”
