Hiker airlifted after medical emergency near Embudo Trailhead in Sandia Mountains

A hiker was airlifted from near Embudo Trailhead on Wednesday after a medical emergency turned a Sandia Mountains outing into a multi-agency rescue.

Albuquerque Fire Rescue got the call at about 11 a.m. after the hiker experienced a medical episode on the trail. Albuquerque police, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office and New Mexico Search and Rescue helped locate the person, and rescuers used a Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office helicopter because of the patient’s condition and the rugged terrain. The hiker was moved to a parking lot at the trailhead and then turned over to ambulance personnel for assessment and treatment.

The same day, AFR handled a second foothills rescue at about 2:20 p.m. at Embudito Trailhead, where another injured hiker could not get down after a leg injury and had to be brought out with a 14-foot ladder. Neither hiker needed additional medical attention after the rescues.

Embudito Trail 192 is 6 miles one way, cell phone coverage is not guaranteed and potable water is not available at the trailhead. The Sandia Foothills Open Space covers about 2,650 acres, with elevations ranging from 5,720 to 6,800 feet above sea level.

The Sandia Mountain Wilderness covers more than 35,000 acres and serves a population of more than 700,000 people in the extended metropolitan area.

In March 2024, three hikers were injured near Embudo Trail when a rockslide or falling boulder triggered another multi-agency response. New Mexico State Police later listed one head injury with brief loss of consciousness, one open leg fracture and one sprained ankle. Two of the hikers were flown to UNM Hospital and one went by personal vehicle. In a follow-up interview, a hiker’s mother said the experience left her son shaken and that counseling had not been offered to the group at that time.