MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL
a division of the
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

Public Information and Education Division - PO Box 568 - Jefferson City, MO 65102


NEWS RELEASE

For further information please contact: Captain J. Tim Hull
(573) 526-6115
Q41813
April 18, 2013

EMPHASIS: Patrol Helicopter Team Rescues Two From Rising Flood Waters


Colonel Ron Replogle, superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol announced today that troopers using the Patrol’s helicopter equipped with a short haul rescue line rescued two turkey hunters who became stranded by rising flood waters in Texas County.
On Thursday, April 18, 2013, at 2:59 p.m., Troop G Headquarters received a telephone call from an individual reporting two turkey hunters trapped by flood waters near Boiling Springs, south of Licking, Missouri. The caller stated that one of the men was confined to a wheelchair and the two men were unable to escape from a field due to rising water.
A trooper from the Missouri State Highway Patrol and firefighters from the Licking Fire Department responded to the scene, and after assessing the situation, determined because of the extremely inaccessible location, that rescue by air would be the best course of action. A Missouri State Highway Patrol helicopter was dispatched from the Patrol’s general headquarters in Jefferson City, and a short haul rescue of the two men was completed at 5:23 p.m.
The men were identified as Keith Duckworth, 54, and Wayne Arling, 53, both of St. Louis, Missouri. Duckworth was transported to a St. Louis area hospital for evaluation and treatment related to exposure.
This type of rescue requires a helicopter with lift capabilities and a pilot with precision skills. The Patrol’s rescue program is FAA certified and allows the Patrol to provide a capability that few law enforcement agencies in the Midwest possess.

For video of the helicopter and Patrol rescue team members training go to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTd71p3PXWk
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Photos of aerial rescue. DSCN0021.JPGDSCN0021.JPGDSCN0027.JPGDSCN0027.JPG