Camp Humphreys copter crew
saves camping family from rising river
By Jim Lea, Osan bureau chief
CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea — A South Korean family’s
camping trip that seemed headed for disaster because of heavy rain Monday turned out
happily, thanks to a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter crew from here.
Hwang Jung-ja, 36, and her three children — Seung-hyun, 11,
Sung-hyun, 5, and Young-hyun, 3 — had camped beside the Som River in Wonju, about 50
miles northeast of Camp Humphreys. Early Monday, torrential rain began falling in Wonju,
and the river began to rise dramatically.
“The water took away our tent and the rising river soon turned
our camping spot into a small island,” Hwang said. “The river was rushing by so
fast! Three men had been camping nearby, and soon we all were stranded. There were three
other men and soon we were all stranded.”
One of the campers contacted police by cellular phone, but when
officers arrived they couldn’t reach the stranded campers.
South Korean police then turned to the U.S. military for help. Marge
Barrell, public affairs officer for the U.S. Army Support Activity at Humphreys, received
a call for emergency assistance at about 12:30 p.m. Monday. She turned the job over to the
377th Medical Company (Air Ambulance) of the 52nd Medical Battalion at the camp.
Two Blackhawks were launched. “We were told there were seven
people, and we initially thought we’d have to lift them out by hoist,” Capt.
Jake Dlugosz said. “When you’re looking for that many people, it’s just
better to have two helicopters.”
The choppers — with Dlugosz piloting the second one — made
the 45-minute flight to Wonju.
“The water was really wild, dirty brown color and moving
fast,” he said. “Then we spotted some police cars and a small crowd of people.
We flew that way and saw the people who were stranded.”
Dlugosz’s chopper arrived first and he and others on board
decided not to try to hoist the stranded campers because they included children.
“We found a place just big enough to land and took them
aboard,” he said. “At first they seemed a little concerned because I don’t
think they understood what was going on. But they settled down quickly and I think the
kids really enjoyed the ride.”
The campers were lifted across the river to where police and the
small crowd of on-lookers were waiting. The two Blackhawks headed home, mission
accomplished.
Hwang said no one was injured during the incident. “We lost our
camping gear,” she said, “but the children have a good story to tell.”
Bae Gi-chul contributed to this report.
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