Local News

North Dakota snowmobiler rescued near West Yellowstone

Posted: Jan 27, 2013 6:24 PM by KBZK Media Center
Updated: Jan 27, 2013 6:25 PM

WEST YELLOWSTONE - A North Dakota man was rescued after a snowmobile accident north of West Yellowstone over the weekend.

At around 1:38 p.m. Saturday, the Gallatin County Search and Rescue was dispatched to a report of an injured snowmobiler in the Cabin Creek drainage, north of West Yellowstone in remote, rugged terrain where experienced snowmobiles ride, according to a news release from the sheriff's department.

Personnel from the West Yellowstone division of Sheriff's Search and Rescue, the U.S. Forest Service, the Hebgen Basin Fire Department and deputies responded and assisted with the rescue. Summit Air Ambulance attempted to reach the scene by helicopter but was turned away due to the heavy cloud cover and snowy conditions.

Rescuers on snowmobiles found a 25-year-old male from Bismarck, North Dakota who had a broken femur on his right leg, which he received when he fell backwards off his snowmobile. He was transported out of the backcountry by the rescue team with a specialized rescue sled that is towed by a snowmobile. He was transferred to a Hebgen Basin Fire Department ambulance and transported to the Bozeman Deaconess Hospital.