Seven people hiking near 10,000 feet in a wilderness area above Marble on Monday afternoon were injured when lightning from a “horrendous” summer thunderstorm hit the tree they were hiding under.
A 16-year-old boy was injured seriously, suffering from burns and shock, said Ron Leach, the Carbondale fire chief who assisted in the rescue. One family’s dog was killed.
Six other people sustained minor injuries, including cuts and scrapes from the bark of a tree that exploded like shrapnel when the lightning hit. One person was thrown 8 feet. The victims were taken to Valley View Hospital in Glenwood Springs for treatment, but hospital officials declined to release their names or conditions.
“It was one of those horrendous, lightning-producing storms that come through here in the summer,” Leach said.
One family with two boys, ages about 10 and 12, met up with the family of the 16-year-old while hiking along the Silver Creek Trail above Lead King Basin in the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness Area about 5 miles east of Marble.
“When the storm came in, they huddled under a tree, which was hit by lightning,” Leach said. “Four of them walked out and called authorities.”
About 25 rescuers responded, driving an hour up to the trailhead, then hiking another hour and a half to the site. The other three people were going for help when rescuers found them.
“It’s very rough country, a wilderness,” Leach said.
Christy Villalobos, a Marble resident who was hiking in the area earlier in the day, described it as “a typical summer storm, but with really a lot of lightning,” she said. “The trails are very steep and get very slippery when they’re wet.”
The area is popular with hikers in the summer because of the fields of wildflowers, the rugged peaks and expansive views from the top.
“We get calls like this four or five times a summer,” said Carl Smith, deputy fire chief from Carbondale. “They become a major project because the terrain is so rough and difficult.”
The hikers’ identities and hometowns were not released late Monday.
Staff writer Mike McPhee can be reached at 303-820-1409 or at mmcphee@denverpost.com.
Free-lancer Gary Hubbell of Marble contributed to this report.
