Crews rescue Boy Scouts stranded on Colorado ice field
OURAY, Colo. - Crews successfully rescued a group of Boy Scouts stranded on an ice field in the mountains of southwestern Colorado on Wednesday.
Marti Whitmore, a spokeswoman for Ouray County, says the 34 children and five adults called for help Wednesday morning. No injuries have been reported.
In true Boy Scout tradition, they have elected to continue with their planned hiking and camping trip on the mountain despite the distress call.
Whitmore said the scouts from Arizona have been hiking and camping in the Richmond Pass area south of the town of Ouray since Monday.
There is still a lot of snow and ice at higher elevations in Colorado and heavy rain, and possibly snow, is possible in the area through Thursday. Flooding in the region is possible as the new rain drains into streams running high because of the spring melt off of snow.
Current weather at the bottom of the mountain is about 40 degrees and rainy. The weather in the area where the troop is believed to be stuck is near freezing with a combination of sleet and freezing rain.
CBS Denver reports that rescue efforts began about 8 a.m. Wednesday.