Ultralight Plane Crash Survivors Evacuated from Zion National Park

Ultralight Plane Crash Survivors Evacuated from Zion National Park
Date: October 19, 2009
Contact: Ron Terry, 435-772-1-0160

On Saturday, October 17, at approximately 6 p.m., an ultralight plane carrying two people crashed in Zion National Park near the Right Fork of North Creek. The pilot and a passenger from the St. George, Utah area received injuries ranging from bumps and bruises to bone fractures. Two Zion National Park medics hiked in, stabilized the injuries and spent the night with them. On Sunday, at approximately 9 a.m., a helicopter from Grand Canyon National Park landed nearby and the patients and medics were evacuated. One of the patients was transported by ambulance to the Dixie Regional Medical Center in St. George, Utah and one refused further medical care.

The ultralight plane reportedly lost power while flying over the Right Fork and struck trees before impacting the ground. Hikers witnessed the event and called 911 to report the crash. Zion National Park was notified and a search and rescue team, including the two park medics, was dispatched to the area to locate the plane and its occupants.

The search and rescue operation involved 13 staff members from Zion National Park and four crew members on the Grand Canyon helicopter plus the ambulance crew on the Hurricane Ambulance that transported the injured person to the hospital.