PISCATAQUIS COUNTY, Maine — A woman with a knee injury was airlifted off Katahdin’s Knife Edge by a Maine Army National Guard Blackhawk helicopter Friday evening, after she and three other hikers spent the night stranded on the mountain.
The hikers became stuck after dark on Thursday in two separate parties along the Knife Edge in Baxter State Park. Park officials said the injured hiker, 47-year-old Beata Kosc of New York, was hoisted by helicopter around 5:45 p.m. Friday and flown to Millinocket Airport, where she was taken by ambulance to a hospital.
The other hikers—Courtney Doyon, 32, of South Portland, along with an unidentified man and a juvenile—were not hurt and were safely escorted down the mountain earlier Friday afternoon.
Rangers had communicated with the group via text overnight and advised them to shelter in place due to poor weather conditions. Rescuers from Chimney Pond and Roaring Brook campgrounds reached the group Friday morning, bringing food, warm clothes, and medical care. A tent was set up on the ridgeline to shelter the injured hiker.
A Maine Forest Service helicopter attempted multiple approaches but was blocked by low clouds and had to refuel. As a precaution, additional rangers and volunteers with the Maine Association of Search and Rescue climbed the Helon Taylor Trail in case a ground rescue became necessary.
Weather conditions briefly improved Friday evening, allowing the Blackhawk crew from Bangor to reach Kosc and conduct a successful hoist rescue.
