iPhone Notification Leads Rescuers To Plane Crash In Nevada Mountains

An automated iPhone crash notification led emergency responders to the site of a plane crash in a remote, mountainous area of Nevada, and the pilot survived, officials said.

The Elko County Sheriff’s Office said an iPhone crash notification came in at around 10:30 a.m. on May 17. The GPS coordinates indicated the crash site was in the East Humboldt Mountain Range and south of Hole in the Mountain Peak, a remote area with “very limited access.”

Deputies responded along with crews from multiple surrounding fire departments and MedEx, and rescuers began making their way up the mountain. While en route, responders learned there had been a plane crash and the pilot, who was the sole occupant, was alive with minor injuries.

Photos shared by the sheriff’s office show the wrecked plane in a blanket of snow. The plane had crashed into the mountain at around 10,200 feet of elevation, above the snow line.

Due to dense cloud cover and inclement weather at the top of the mountains, air rescue could not fly to the crash site in the morning. Rescuers on foot prepared for the possibility that they might have to carry the pilot off the mountain.

At around 2:30 p.m., however, the weather cleared enough for a rescue helicopter to airlift the pilot off the mountain. The pilot was transferred to emergency medical services.

“This would not have been a successful recuse operation without the teamwork of all involved,” the sheriff’s office said.