BASS LAKE – Nearly two-dozen sheriff’s deputies, firefighters, CHP, SAR volunteers and EMS personnel were called out to rescue six individuals from the Beasore Meadows area yesterday after several of the group suffered the effects of carbon monoxide exposure.
The 911 call came in at about 4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 9, after someone at Beasore was able to make their way down the mountain on a snow machine until a cell signal was available.
Two men and one woman, all approximately 40 to 50 years of age according to the Sheriff’s Office, were overcome by the exhaust from a generator as they were working on it inside a shed near a cabin at Beasore Meadows.
First responders set up a staging area on Road 274 at Beasore Road, and deputies headed to that location with a Sheriff’s Office side-by-side UTV, and another belonging to a SAR (Search & Rescue) volunteer.
CHP’s H40 helicopter headed up from the valley to see if weather would permit them to access the Beasore area, but that would not be the case. With the danger of them getting socked in, the H40 crew landed at Chukchansi Casino in Coarsegold to await the ground ambulance.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, there was approximately six feet of snow at Beasore yesterday afternoon.
Meanwhile, a private citizen was able to load the three affected individuals into his personal side-by-side with tracks and bring them down to the staging area at Road 274. They arrived just before 5 p.m.
One patient was taken by Sierra Ambulance to the landing zone at the casino and airlifted to Community Regional Medical Center. The other two were transported by ground ambulance, also to CRMC. All were reported to be conscious and alert.
As Deputies Jack Williamson, Michael Chambers and Larry Rich, along with a medic, headed up the mountain to retrieve the other three people, one-lane traffic control was put in place along Road 274 due to the large amount of equipment staging.
One female in her 30s and two kids under the age of 16 were brought down in side-by-sides by deputies. None had gone into the shed and were not affected by the fumes.
After an approximately 35-mile round-trip for deputies in darkness and very deep snow, the second group arrived back at the staging area at about 7:30 p.m. All three were evaluated by EMS and required no medical attention.
The Sheriff’s Office reminds everyone that with this cold winter weather, it is imperative that you be vigilant and always aware that this type of equipment will give off fumes that can be deadly.
