After spending four days stranded 4,300 feet up the Bear Glacier, 36-year-old Jennifer Neyman and 45-year-old Chris Hanna were rescued via helicopter just after noon Tuesday, and are recovering locally.
Alaska Air National Guard Tech Sargent Alicia Halla with the 176th…
Halla: “A Pave Hawk HH-60 landed on the glacier. Pararescuemen from the 212th rescue squadron were able to rescue the survivors. Both are reported to be in good shape and they have been delivered to the medical care of the Soldotna hospital.”
Central Peninsula Hospital Director of external affairs Bruce Richards spoke with Hanna at the hospital…
Richards: “He appears to be doing well and has refused treatment, he’s not a patient at the hospital. Jenny has signed a release for a release of information but is currently still being evaluated so I’m unable to give a condition at this time because I don’t have one.”
The pair had set out for a day trip last Friday in the Harding Icefields but bad weather set in and the plane scheduled to pick them up was unable to land.
After blizzard like conditions shredded the tent that Hanna had brought for emergencies, the couple sent an SOS via their inReach satellite phone and waited to be rescued in an snow cave they built.
Rescue teams battled the relentless storms as efforts continued to reach Hanna and Neyman, dropping a supply package Monday evening.
Lt. Col. Candis Olmstead wrote in a release Tuesday afternoon, “Weather cleared enough over the area where the stranded skiers were sheltered in order for an HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter from the 176th Wing, Alaska Air National Guard, to land on the glacier at about 12:10 p.m. Alaska Time. Pararescuemen who flew in on the helo immediately assessed the health of the survivors and loaded them onto the aircraft to be transported to medical care.”
