How can you Minimize your Risk of Lightning in the Backcountry?

You’re not alone if the lightning incident at Enos Lake this week has instilled an elevated sense of fear of thunderstorms in the backcountry. We are having many of those same feelings, as it appears the Enos Lake strike was a random accident. According to preliminary reports, the group had shelters spread across an equitable distance, located in a low-lying area of terrain, and among evenly height trees and shrubs. This is pretty much by the book, according to the National Lightning Safety Institute.

The recent lightning fatality stresses the need to know how to prepare for a lightning storm in the backcountry. This file photo is not from the event in question. Photo: Matt Hansen/TCSAR Foundation

It’s important to remember that lightning fatalities are still rare. This was the first lightning fatality in Wyoming in at least a decade, and only the ninth such fatality this year in the U.S. Given the millions of backcountry user days across our region, the chances of getting struck by lightning are small. And yet it still poses a significant danger and it’s good to know how to minimize your risk. (Our podcast, The Fine Line, dove deep into one of the most dramatic lightning events and rescue efforts in Jackson Hole history.)

So what can you do if you are in the backcountry during lightning activity? A critical piece is being hyper aware of weather patterns and where you are in relation to approaching thunderclouds.

Local meteorologist Jim Woodmencey addressed this question in a recent column for the Jackson Hole News & Guide. He includes the following tips:

1. Get off ridgetops. Avoid open meadows. Get off the lake or out of the water.

2. Never run for cover under a lone tree. A grove of trees of similar height is a better option. Be cognizant to not stand on top of tree roots.

3. Avoid direct contact with any metal or graphite objects. Climbing gear, fishing poles, your bike, hiking poles, etc.

4. If you are stuck in an exposed location, stay put and protect yourself from ground currents by standing still with both feet together. This can prevent the ground current from traveling up through your body.

5. If in a group, never huddle together. Spread out, 25 to 50 feet apart. That way, when the grenade drops fewer people in your party will be affected by the blast.

6. If all else fails, run like hell to get to a safer location, and hope whatever Thor is throwing down that day misses you by a wide margin.

Be safe out there, everyone. For more backcountry safety resources, visit BackcountryZero.com.

TCSAR Responds to Lightning Strike in the Teton Wilderness

August 3, 2022

Jackson, Wyo. — Teton County Search & Rescue was notified at 6:25 p.m. on Tuesday, August 2, that lightning had struck a group of backpackers camped at Enos Lake in the Teton Wilderness. One person, a 22-year-old male, died in the incident, while another, an adult male, sustained major injuries. The lightning bolt reportedly hit the backpackers at camp. The men were part of a group of 14 adults on an organized wilderness trip.

TCSAR mobilized a response by issuing a request for the interagency helicopter from Teton Helitack. The request was approved and the helicopter flew three SAR volunteers to the site on Tuesday evening. CPR had been in progress for more than an hour when the ship landed with the SAR team members. TCSAR members took over but the patient could not be revived. 

The Teton Interagency Helicopter departs with TCSAR volunteers for a callout about a lightning strike on a group of campers in the Teton Wilderness. Photo: TCSAR

The helicopter did two flights out. In the first, the ship flew the injured patient and one SAR member out of the backcountry. The injured patient was transferred to an ambulance in Moran, transported to St. John’s Health, and then flown to Eastern Idaho Medical Center. The helicopter returned to the scene for a second flight and transported the deceased patient to the Jackson Hole Airport, where he was met by the Teton County Coroner. Out of respect for the family, TCSAR is not releasing the name or residence of the deceased.

Due to nightfall and inclement weather, the helicopter could not return to the scene on Tuesday. The two remaining SAR members stayed overnight to manage the scene and provide support to the other members of the party.

In the morning, the TCSAR volunteers on scene communicated to Incident Command that two additional members of the party would need an air evac from the backcountry. Enos Lake is a 12-mile hike from the Pacific Creek Trailhead. There was concern that the two individuals would not be able to make it due to acute emotional reaction and medical concerns exacerbated by the long hike out. TCSAR again requested the interagency helicopter, but lingering fog delayed a flight until after 11 a.m. When the weather cleared, the interagency helicopter flew to the site and picked up the two additional patients and two SAR members and transported them out of the backcountry.

According to the National Lightning Safety Council, this was the first lightning fatality in Wyoming this year, and the ninth in the U.S.

TCSAR recognizes the tragedy of this rare event, and extends its sincere condolences to the deceased man’s family and friends and everyone involved in the incident. The team also appreciates the partnership with Teton Helitack and support from Grand Teton National Park that facilitated the use of the interagency helicopter.

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About TCSAR: Teton County Search and Rescue (TCSAR) was started in 1993 by the Teton County Sheriff’s Office ​to provide vital emergency search and rescue services for Teton County and surrounding areas to those in need. The TCSAR Foundation supports TCSAR volunteers through direct support, community education and advocacy. Together, we create an organization that works to keep Teton County residents and visitors safe in the backcountry 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Teton County Search & Rescue Responds to Four Callouts in Two Days

Jackson, Wyo. — Teton County Search & Rescue volunteers were called to respond to four callouts in two days last week, continuing what has so far been a very busy summer of rescues. On Friday morning, July 29, the team was alerted to a pair of missing horseback riders in the Teton Wilderness north of Turpin Meadows. Later that afternoon, the team got another call about an injured horseback rider in the Gros Ventre Mountains. Then on Saturday, July 30, the volunteers responded to a woman who’d been injured while riding her mountain bike on the Mill Creek Trail of Teton Canyon. About 90 minutes later, there was another callout to help an injured hiker in Phillips Canyon. 

TCSAR volunteers transport an injured mountain biker down the Mill Creek Trail in Teton Canyon on Saturday, July 30. Photo: TCSAR

The weekend tally means the team has now responded to 30 calls for service since June 1. This surpasses the call rate during the same time frame from a year ago, when the team had responded to 24 calls. The 30 calls since June 1 is the most since at least 2012.

In the first mission on Friday, TCSAR was notified that a pair of horseback riders had left Turpin Meadows on Thursday to go for a half-day ride but failed to return before nightfall. The team was paged at 5 a.m. Friday to initiate a response. The team put in a request for the interagency helicopter to conduct an aerial search. A sheriff deputy and ground-based TCSAR team was also dispatched to the trailhead to see if they could find the missing subjects’ vehicle. The vehicle was still at the trailhead, along with paper maps on the dash. Meanwhile, the heli request was granted, and two SAR members were flown over the area in question to see if they could spot the missing horse riders. At 12:30 p.m., the horseback riders were eventually located, uninjured, about one mile north of Soda Fork and the North Buffalo Fork. They were lost and had spent a cold night out in the woods but were otherwise OK. They exited the backcountry on their own power and notified TCSAR when they reached their vehicle. 

TCSAR volunteers scan the backcountry from the interagency helicopter in search of two missing horseback riders on July 29. The horse riders were found and uninjured, albeit a little lost. Photo: TCSAR

The Turpin Meadows operation was the eighth interagency helicopter mission by TCSAR volunteers this summer. Because TCSAR does not have a helicopter on contract in the summer, they must go through Teton Helitack to have a helicopter released for rescues in Teton County. The helicopter may be released if it’s available and not being used for another purpose. TCSAR is grateful for the Teton Helitack partnership that allows the team to conduct these helicopter missions.

Later that Friday afternoon, at 3:39 p.m., the volunteers were paged to respond to a woman who had fallen from her horse near Goosewing Ranch. TCSAR responded by driving a truck up the Gros Ventre Road. They located the patient, treated her injuries, and helped her to a waiting ambulance at the trailhead. The incident involved 12 volunteers and took 3 hours, 54 minutes. 

At 11:20 a.m. on Saturday, the team was alerted to a female mountain biker who had crashed about a mile up the Mill Creek Trail in Teton Canyon. Five volunteers drove over Teton Pass to the trailhead and hiked up the trail to locate the patient, who was complaining of severe pain in her lower leg. The team packaged her for transport in the wheeled litter and brought her down the trail to a waiting ambulance. That incident involved 10 volunteers and 4 hours to complete.

As that rescue was in progress, the team was called to assist a woman who’d become injured while hiking in Phillips Canyon. The woman had reportedly fallen while crossing a log bridge. Two TCSAR volunteers who were originally driving to the Mill Creek rescue were diverted directly to the Phillips Bench, along with a truck with more team members. The vehicles drove up the powerline two-track and hiked in about 1.5 miles with the wheeled litter and medical supplies. The volunteers packaged the patient, and wheeled her on the litter back to the RZR. From there, the team drove her to the trailhead to a waiting ambulance. This mission had 16 volunteers and came to a close after 3 hours, 57 minutes.

—About TCSAR and TCSAR Foundation: Teton County Search & Rescue was started in 1993 by the Teton County Sheriff’s Office to provide vital emergency search and rescue services for Teton County and surrounding areas to those in need. The TCSAR Foundation supports TCSAR volunteers through direct support, community education and advocacy. Together, we create an organization that works to keep Teton County residents and visitors safe in the backcountry 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.