Chief Master Sgt. Nicholas Gascon of the 857th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron speaks at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, Nev. on Aug. 26, 2024. Seven airmen from the base were honored with a coin for pulling off a rescue at Utah’s Zion National Park earlier in the month. (Brianna Vetro/U.S. Air Force)
Several airmen stationed in Las Vegas were recognized this week for saving a seemingly lifeless pregnant woman and three of her hiking companions from a flash flood at Zion National Park in Utah, according to Nellis Air Force Base officials.
Airmen 1st Class Will Martin, Demarcus Norman, Maximos Olade, Jacob Stillwell, Rony Lopez-Aguilar, and Airmen Andres Parra and Christian Reyes received command coins Monday at a ceremony at Nellis, base officials said in a statement.
While trekking along a popular route in the park earlier this month, the airmen noticed rising water. As they started climbing to higher ground, they spotted a woman floating on her back who appeared “battered, blue and lifeless,” the statement said.
Norman was the first to react, jumping in the water and fighting the current to pull the woman to shore. She was barely responsive for an hour as the team called for help, Martin said.
During the journey to a better air evacuation location, the woman said she was pregnant and had been with her husband and two others.
The group eventually encountered the woman’s husband and the other hikers, one of whom was stranded on the opposite side of the river with an injured knee.
Forming a human chain, they linked arms to get the injured man across the river, the statement said, adding that the victims were then taken to a safe location, where they were airlifted.
Chief Master Sgt. Adrienne Warren, the 99th Air Base Wing command chief master sergeant, gives out coins at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., on Aug. 26, 2024 to airmen who helped save hikers from a flash flood in Utah's Zion National Park. (Brianna Vetro/U.S. Air Force)
Airmen pose with coins during a ceremony at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., on Aug. 26, 2024. The airmen saved the lives of a pregnant woman and her companions during a flash flood at Zion National Park earlier in the month. They are from left, Airman 1st Class Rony Lopez-Aguilar, Airman Andres Parra, Airmen 1st Class Maximos Olade and Will Martin, Airman Christian Reyes and Airmen 1st Class Demarcus Norman and Jacob Stillwell. At far right is Chief Master Sgt. Adrienne Warren, the 99th Air Base Wing command chief master sergeant. (Brianna Vetro/U.S. Air Force)
An airman displays the 99th Air Base Wing command chief master sergeant coin during a ceremony at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., Aug. 26, 2024. Seven airmen were presented with coins to acknowledge their efforts in saving lives during a flash flood at Zion National Park. (Brianna Vetro/U.S. Air Force)
The Virgin River flows through Zion National Park’s spectacular rock formations, and in places such as The Narrows, the lack of a trail forces hikers to walk in the river.
The Nellis statement did not say when or where the rescue occurred, but Zion was under several flash flood warnings throughout August, according to the park service.
Known for its narrow canyons and steep terrain, Zion National Park is prone to flash floods, which occur when heavy rainfall from thunderstorms increases the speed and depth of rivers and streams, often with little warning.
In 2022, a woman was swept away by the rising water in The Narrows near the Temple of Sinawava.
Visitation to Zion has skyrocketed in the past 15 years or so, from 2.6 million in 2010 to a peak of just over 5 million in 2021, the National Park Service website shows.
That year, it was in the top three American national parks for number of visits and joined a small club of national parks that have ever topped the 5 million mark in visits, according to the National Park Service and Statista.
