PCSO Rescues Hiker After Snake Bite

On April 13, around 10:45 a.m., the Pinal County Sheriff's Office got a call from an injured hiker. A woman reported she had been bitten by a rattlesnake while hiking on the Peralta Trail in the Superstition Mountains. Search and Rescue deputies, along with a Border Patrol agent from the BORSTAR Unit, were dispatched via the PCSO helicopter. Using the aircraft's hoist, the woman was lifted onboard and flown to a nearby landing zone, where she was transferred to an ambulance for hospital transport.

"Nature is full of hazards," Sheriff Ross Teeple said. "Heat and dehydration are our biggest concerns as the weather heats up, but it also means that we will see more snakes. Being prepared and being alert are your best weapons. Fortunately this woman had a charged cell phone in this emergency, which allowed for a much quicker rescue."