40-year-old Ruth Woroniecki is said to be recovering after she fell nearly 200 feet while hiking on the icy mountain of Cucamonga Peak on Christmas Eve.
She was miraculously found by another hiker who called a rescue team to come help her. Authorities said Ruth was staying at the Lytle Creek campground when she decided to hike Cucamonga Peak, which is one of the highest mountains in the San Gabriel Mountains.
“As Woroniecki hiked down the switchbacks, she slipped on ice and fell approximately 200 feet,” San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department’s Corporal Chris Mejia told CBS. “She came to rest on a fallen tree trunk and sustained injuries.”
After reaching the 8,800-foot summit and beginning her descent, Woroniecki slipped on ice and fell approximately 200 feet, where she came to rest on a fallen tree trunk and sustained serious injuries.
— Gurbaksh Singh Chahal (@gchahal) December 26, 2022
The department said Ruth was wearing tennis shoes at the time and didn’t have any ice-climbing gear so she wasn’t well equipped for the icy hike to begin with.
She was unconscious until the other hiker found her and contacted authorities. The hiker was “equipped with crampons and an ice axe,” and “hiked to her location and assessed her condition.”
Not long after calling in for help, a helicopter rescue team flew out to the location and was able to hoist Ruth out of there, despite strong winds that were making it difficult.
“She seemed a little dazed, confused, but very thankful we were able to get her off that mountain,” Deputy Doug Brimmer, who flew the “40 King 4” rescue helicopter the day of Woroniecki’s rescue told CBS. “She initially went feet first and then she hit her head on a log and she went unconscious. She woke up to another hiker helping her out.”
An aerial search team located Woroniecki and determined a rescue helicopter would be required “due to her location and the amount of time it would take for ground crews to reach her.”
— Gurbaksh Singh Chahal (@gchahal) December 26, 2022
Ruth was flown to a nearby hospital where she was treated for serious injuries she suffered to her neck and head.
As she is currently preparing for surgery, Ruth passed along a message through her mother to tell CBS to remind people to keep their faith in times like these.
“I know that God is such a good father that he has a plan through the pain,” she said. “To anyone else who is suffering, call out to Jesus and he will help you. I would like to say a deep thank you from the bottom of my heart to the rescue team and to the hikers who helped me and stayed with me.”