The Snohomish County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue Unit and Gold Bar Fire worked into the early hours of the morning Sunday to rescue a 13-year-old Burien boy from the rocks above Wallace Falls in Gold Bar.
The Sheriff’s Office says the incident began around 5 pm Saturday evening when the boy was hiking with his father and his father's friend. The boy was wading in Wallace River when he slipped on the rocks and went into the water.
The boy then went over a 10-foot waterfall before he was able to scramble to a rock, narrowly escaping the 265-foot main waterfall.
By the time rescuers arrived, the boy was wet and standing on the rock about 15 feet from shore.
“It was maybe two feet by four feet and then just a few feet away – four or five feet at the most – was the drop,” said Ranger Shawn Tobin.
The Sheriff’s Office says the rescue was especially difficult because an overhead rock face restricted a clear vertical descent from a helicopter.
Rescuers eventually made it to the area adjacent to the boy. They were able to throw clothes and food to the boy.
At 1:36 a.m., the boy was finally removed from the rock and the 10 rescuers camped overnight with him until they were flown from the area by helicopter at 6 a.m. Sunday.
The boy did not require medical treatment at the scene, but was going to be checked later by a physician.
“He was in remarkable shape for what he went through, so that in itself is quite a miracle,” said Tobin.
KING 5's Susan Wyatt and Amy Moreno contributed to this report.
