Your Incredible Neighbors: Local troop helps 65-year-old woman in distress

The Boy Scout oath says a Scout must keep himself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight, and mostly importantly, be prepared to help other people at all times.

Three Sahuarita Boy Scouts honored these principles when they aided in the rescue of a Tucson woman earlier this month who had become ill while hiking in Bear Canyon.

The group, which consisted of 11-year-olds Justin Edwards, Daniel Gay and Tristan Scott, and leaders Jeremy Baldwin, Steve Gay and Cade Walton, was hiking in the Seven Falls area when they came across 65-year-old Connie McIntee, who was suffering from severe dehydration.

“We were on our way back from the waterfalls when we came across a woman resting underneath the cavity of a rock,” said leader Jeremy Baldwin. “She said she was feeling faint, and we offered her our services as an escort back to the trail.”

The temperature was in the high-90s that day and the Scouts were in a rugged part of the canyon, about four miles away from the trail head. McIntee said she had been taking diet pills that reduce the body’s water-weight and caused her to become dehydrated.

Baldwin said it took them an hour to get one mile because McIntee was weak and could barely walk. The group used a cell phone to call 9-1-1.

“The Boy Scouts did a great job, and were especially helpful because they had a Global Positioning System and could give us their exact location,” said Pima County Sheriff’s Officer Eric Johnson, who responded to the scene.

Tucson’s all-volunteer Search and Rescue Association (SARA), which works with the Sheriff’s Department, was called out and arrived an hour later on horseback. The terrain proved to be too rocky to transport McIntee out of the canyon and they were forced to call in an emergency helicopter.

McIntee was taken to University Medical Center, where she was treated for dehydration and released.

Her situation was more dangerous than some may think; extreme temperatures and high physical exertion can be deadly if a person is dehydrated. A 31-year-old woman hiking in Mesa last month died after she passed out in the 105-degree heat and could not be revived. The woman’s family is now petitioning for Arizona hiking trails to be marked with warnings about the importance of water and staying hydrated.

McIntee said she doesn’t know what she would have done if the Boy Scouts hadn’t found her.

“We’re very proud of the way they handled the situation, and Connie was so grateful for their help,” said leader Steve Gay.

“The boys were just great with her. They held her hand when we were helping her down the mountain, and they gave her their Skittles and Gatorade,” said Baldwin. While waiting for the search and rescue workers, the boys gave McIntee a cool cloth for her head and talked with her, trying to keep her calm, he said.

The first-year Boy Scouts, who graduated from the Cub Scouts last year, have been working on their emergency preparedness badge, one of the requirements being to prepare for and participate in a simulated emergency. But because the Scouts encountered a real emergency, the requirements are fulfilled, said Baldwin.

“The boys were happy they were able to help someone, and put their training to use,” he said.

jrichardson@gvnews.com | 547-9726