CLEVELAND - Three Hall County teens had to call for help from local officials Monday afternoon to help them find their way off Yonah Mountain in White County.
Fire Department spokeswoman Ana Newberry said the teens were on their way down the mountain around 5:30 p.m. when they became lost and it was getting darker, colder and heavy fog was rolling in.
One teenager separated from the group was able to find his way to the base of Yonah and headed to his car and waited on his friends to arrive. They were in touch with each other via cell phones but the other two could still not find their way out; so they decided to call 911. The dispatcher advised them to "stay in place" so they could "ping" the cell phone towers and triangulate their location.
Once the approximate location was determined, Newberry said firefighters used computers and maps to find the best route to reach them. Staff members along with volunteers from station 3 and 4 responded. They used flashlight, sirens and verbal commands to locate the teens around 7:30 p.m. The two were actually located in "the saddle" area between Yonah and Pink Mountains.
The teens and their rescuers arrived at the base of the mountain around 9:45 p.m. where they were evaluated by White County Emergency Medical Service personnel. The teenagers were not injured, but they were cold and tired, according to emergency workers. The teenagers were then taken to their parents.
Firefighters were on scene for 5 hours during the incident.
Sunday
May 19th, 2024
10:50AM
