Lost Teen Hikers Airlifted to Safety

Los Angeles firefighters on the ground and in the air assisted to safety two teenaged boys who became lost on a trail in Pacific Palisades tonight, a fire official said.

The call of hikers in distress was received at about 7:30 p.m. from the 16 and 17-year-old boys in the 1500 block of Palisades Drive, said Erik Scott of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

By talking with them on a cell phone, determining they were near a waterfall, by coordinating their use of a flashlight and “having them drop a pen on a cellphone,” firefighters were able to hone in on them, Scott said.

Firefighters located the teens and “were able to assist them to safety,” he said.

The teens did not require transport to a hospital, Scott said.

Hikers frequently become lost if they are on a trail when it turns dark, Sgt. Gary Levy of the Los Angeles Police Department’s West LA Station.

City News Service