ECHO TRAIL— The Minnesota Air Rescue Team, or MART, was back in the Ely area this past Friday, responding to an injured hiker along the Angleworm Trail. The call came into the Morse-Fall Lake Fire Department about 8:20 p.m., when the young adult hiker reported he had suffered a deep laceration to his upper thigh after he accidently struck himself with a machete.
Another individual who was hiking with the victim had been attempting to control the bleeding from the injury with t-shirts and bandages.
Morse-Fall Lake Fire Chief Ted Krueger said they made the decision almost immediately to get the MART airborne. “Due to the conditions, the victim’s location, and his level of injury, we opted not to delay,” said Krueger.
According to Krueger, the hiker, who was not from the area, was about six miles into the roughly 14-mile loop trail, which passes through rugged, densely forested terrain. That made the MART, with their aerial extraction capability, the obvious call for the circumstances, said Krueger.
“Otherwise, this would have required a large operation involving the [St. Louis County] rescue squad and the Ely ambulance. We would have likely had to transport the patient to Home Lake to be picked up by float plane.”
The Morse-Fall Lake department has deployed the MART on several occasions in recent years, most recently back in May for another nighttime extraction. “It’s a great asset to have,” said Krueger.
According to Krueger, the MART, which is based in St. Paul, took about two hours in the air to arrive at the Ely Airport, where it soon headed to the site of the accident. Krueger said the victim remained composed despite his injury and sounded calm throughout his discussions with rescuers.
The MART transported the victim to Ely-Bloomenson Hospital where he received treatment for his wound.