Coast Guard airlifts river rafter stranded on Klehini sandbar

A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew rescued a packrafter on June 14 after her raft capsized the day before on the Klehini River.

The 42-year-old woman was exhibiting signs of hypothermia after a crew from Air Station Sitka arrived in a MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter, according to a Coast Guard press release. She was flown to Haines and Haines Volunteer Fire Department emergency medical technicians provided care. She was reported in a stable condition.

Customs and Border Protection officers encountered the woman’s partner walking along Haines Highway. He said the pair had become stranded on a sandbar where they had spent the night after the raft capsized.

“The man reported that he decided to swim across the river Sunday morning and hike to the road to find help,” a press release states. “The Coast Guard helicopter crew was able to land directly on the sandbar where the woman was stranded before taking her aboard.”