Hiker, 61, survives after being trapped by a 318kg boulder for three hours
30 May 2025, 17:05
A man has emerged unscathed after being pinned down by a 318kg boulder for three hours near a remote glacier south of Anchorage, Alaska.
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Kell Morris, 61, said he was “doubtful there was going to be a good outcome” after slipping 20 feet to an icy creek during a hike on an undeveloped trail last Saturday.
He said his fall face down in the water became a “blur” but was immediately struck in the back by what Seward Fire Chief Clinton Crites told Associated Press was an “avalanche of boulders.”
Mr Morris was saved by his wife Jo Roop, a retired Alaska State Trooper, who held his head above water to prevent him from drowning until emergency services arrived.
Read more: British tourist killed after being struck by boulder on trek through Himalayas
A sled dog tourism company that operates on the glacier also intercepted the 911 call and offered rescuers the use of its helicopter.
The area where Mr Morris was trapped is inaccessible to all-terrain vehicles.
“I think if we hadn’t had that private helicopter assist us, it would have taken us at least another 45 minutes to get to him, and I’m not sure he had that much time,” Mr Crites sad.
Seven responders lifted Mr Morris who was in and out of consciousness and hypothermic, with the assistance of inflatable airbags.
He spent two nights in a local hospital for observation but “walked away without a scratch on him”, Crites said.
The hiker said he was “lucky” to be alive.
He has now vowed to stick to established trails when hiking.
Last year, Matilda Campbell miraculously survived after being trapped upside down for seven hours between two boulders in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales.
She fell down the narrow gap after trying to retrieve her phone on a walk with friends.
Rescuers had to winch a 500kg block out of the way to extricate Ms Campbell.
Paramedic Peter Watts said: “In my 10 years as a rescue paramedic I had never encountered a job quite like this, it was challenging but incredibly rewarding.”
Ms Campbell had only scratches and bruises.
