SLO firefighters rescue hikers and homeless swept up in storm

January 17, 2019

San Luis Obispo firefighters came to the rescue of a person on Bishop Peak Wednesday night, as well as multiple homeless individuals who were stranded by the storm early Thursday morning. [KSBY]

Fire crews started the night by helping a person who was stuck on Bishop Peak, Interim Chief Keith Aggson said. Rescuers brought the person down the mountain just before midnight.

At about 2:45 a.m., a man became stuck on an “island” created by two channels of water surrounding him at the Bob Jones trailhead. The water rose to six to seven feet, prompting the man to take to higher ground and eventually climb a tree.

Firefighters staged in the area but waited until 6 a.m. to attempt the rescue because of the heavy flow of water and vegetation in the area. Once rescued, the man declined medical treatment. He said, though, his entire encampment had been washed away.

As the rescue at the Bob Jones trailhead was taking place, fire personnel learned that a couple in a tent was stuck in a creek bottom about a quarter mile away, just south of Los Osos Valley Road. The man and woman were about 25 feet down an embankment.

Firefighters used a rope to lift the couple to safety. They, too, declined medical help.

Fire officials and park rangers are instructing people sleeping in creeks or drainage areas to move to higher ground when storms are approaching.