by The Associated Press
Friday, May 28, 2010
ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- A Denali National Park helicopter crew has rescued an injured Canadian climber from the 14,000-foot level of Alaska's Mount McKinley.
Unable to find a landing spot, pilot Andy Hermansky hovered with only the tips of the helicopter's skids touching the snow as 40-year-old Luc Benoit of Montreal was rescued Thursday afternoon.
Park spokeswoman Maureen McLaughlin says Benoit reportedly fell 1,000 feet on Wednesday evening while solo climbing the West Rib route on the 20,320-foot-tall peak. He was unable to safely move due to an injured shoulder and loss of gear and called for help Thursday morning.
