After overnight search, hikers located on AB Mountain in Skagway

Two hikers from Whitehorse who got turned around on the Arctic Brotherhood Trail outside of Skagway on Tuesday evening, were located mid-morning Wednesday uninjured.

Members of the Skagway Volunteer Fire Department and the U.S. Coast Guard searched through the night.

The search and rescue call went out just before 9 p.m. Tuesday announcing that the two hikers were overdue. Volunteers from Skagway’s fire department and, later, members of the Coast Guard looked for Wei Yang, 30, and Yun Zhu, 22, overnight.

A Coast Guard Jayhawk was deployed from Sitka at about 1:30 a.m. Wednesday. Petty officer Lauren Steenson says they coordinated with the Alaska State Troopers and the Skagway searchers, and looked for several hours in the early morning hours with a spot light.

They were on standby as of 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, but the weather had gone downhill. With the clouds rolling in and visibility waning, the search was relegated to the ground. Temsco Helicopter pilots also were on standby to assist if needed.

According to the Alaska State Troopers, the hikers were located, cold and wet but otherwise uninjured, at about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Megan Peters, a public information officer with the troopers, said the call came in to the Alaska Wildlife Troopers, and while there is no trooper post in Skagway, they often serve as a command center to help with incidents like this one.

“A lot of times we used local search and rescue volunteer assets, or we pool assets from other areas and we manage the search and rescue operation,” she said. “Just because there’s not one physically there doesn’t mean that we don’t have the case and we’re not organizing and making sure people are accounted for. The last thing we want is for somebody to go searching and then become missing themselves.”

The 10-mile roundtrip trek to the top of AB Mountain is a strenuous affair with an elevation gain of about 5,000 feet. And while it’s a popular hike, the trail is not as well-maintained as some of the easier ones in the area.

“All of our search and rescue responders are all volunteers,” said Emily Rauscher, the emergency services administrator for the Municipality of Skagway. “So, the time that they commit is invaluable and it’s really appreciated. Nobody is getting paid, it’s their time that they’re donating, they’re losing out on sleep and then they’re going right into work the next day. It’s pretty amazing.”

She says more than 20 volunteers show up to help with the search efforts.

KHNS - Haines

KHNS is our partner station in Haines. KTOO collaborates with partners across the state to cover important news and to share stories with our audiences.

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