On Sunday, July 10, park rangers were notified that a 61-year-old man from Boulder had been injured in a significant tumbling fall on a snow couloir in the Ptarmigan Fingers area above Odessa Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park. It was later determined that a 59-year-old woman from Boulder also suffered injuries from a fall in the same area. Bystanders heard her calls for help and aided her. 

Bystanders were able to use their satellite communication devices to contact park rangers. An air ambulance from Northern Colorado Med Evac assisted Rocky Mountain National Park Search and Rescue team members with air reconnaissance to determine the man’s exact location. Because of the location and severity of his injuries, the park requested assistance from a Colorado National Guard helicopter from Buckley Air Force Base to extricate the man via a hoist operation, using a winch-operated cable. Rocky Mountain Rescue assisted with the helicopter hoist operations. The man was flown to Upper Beaver Meadows, transferred to Northern Colorado Med Evac air ambulance, and flown to Medical Center of the Rockies.   

The woman also suffered serious injuries and was cared for overnight by Rocky Mountain National Park Search and Rescue team members and campers at Odessa Lake. A Northern Colorado Med Evac air ambulance flew her out on July 11.