`IT'S A MIRACLE'; MISSING TEEN SNOWBOARDER RESCUED ALIVE.Byline: Bhavna Mistry, Charles F. Bostwick and Eric Wahlgren / Daily News Staff Writers Jeff Thornton, the 14-year-old snowboarder lost six days in a snowy canyon, was found Friday by searchers: frostbitten frost·bite n. Injury or destruction of skin and underlying tissue, most often that of the nose, ears, fingers, or toes, resulting from prolonged exposure to freezing or subfreezing temperatures. tr.v. , bruised, missing one boot, exhausted and disoriented dis·o·ri·ent tr.v. dis·o·ri·ent·ed, dis·o·ri·ent·ing, dis·o·ri·ents To cause (a person, for example) to experience disorientation. Adj. 1. - but alive. Finding tracks in a treacherous ice chute leading down the back side of the Mountain High ski resort, two members of the Sierra Madre Sierra Madre, city, United States Sierra Madre (sēĕr`ə mä`drā), residential city (1990 pop. 10,762), Los Angeles co., S Calif., at the foot of Mt. Wilson; inc. 1907. There is some light manufacturing. Search and Rescue Team found Thornton beside Bear Creek Bear Creek may refer to: Communities
His mother, Lori Thornton, had been packing to return to the search site when news of his rescue came, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. her lifelong best friend, Adeline Collins. ``Never did she ever give up hope. She knew her son would be out there,'' Collins said. ``She called me at work and was just screaming, `They found him, they found him!' '' Thornton was taken by helicopter to Foothill Presbyterian Hospital in Glendora, where he was listed in critical but stable condition. ``It's a miracle It's a Miracle was a television show that aired on PAX-TV (now Independent Television) between September 6, 1998 and September 1, 2004.[1] Initially hosted by Richard Thomas[2], and later by Roma Downey, [3] . The kid's obviously tough,'' said Darrel Airhart, a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department This article is about the Los Angeles County Sherriff's Department, not to be confused with the smaller Los Angeles County Police The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) is a local law enforcement agency that serves Los Angeles County, California. paramedic par·a·med·ic n. A person who is trained to give emergency medical treatment or assist medical professionals. paramedic who was on Friday's search team. ``It's a great thing when you finally have a nice outcome. Usually we find the people, but it's too late.'' Lori Thornton was flown in from the family home in Brawley to be reunited with her son. ``She cried and said, `Oh my baby.' Then she said, `What happened to you?' '' said a medical technician who witnessed the reunion. Search and rescue team members Art Fortini and Randy Katai spotted the boy's footprints about 1 p.m. and found him about 2 p.m. below the mountain's snow line. The 5-foot, 9-inch, 190-pound high school football player was missing one boot and had a black eye and bruises. Collins said Thornton gave the family and doctors a few details about how he got lost. ``He hit a rock and just kind of lost consciousness,'' she said. All week, fellow Brawley Union High School This article or section needs sources or references that appear in reliable, third-party publications. Alone, primary sources and sources affiliated with the subject of this article are not sufficient for an accurate encyclopedia article. students wore blue ribbons with the words ``In hope of Jeffrey.'' Churches in the town offered prayers for his rescue. ``It's undescribable. We're so thankful that our prayers have been answered,'' said Donna Tapia, another family friend. On the first night after the boy disappeared, 2 feet of snow fell and gales up to 80 mph blasted the south slope of Blue Ridge. It adjoins the Mountain High ski resort on the edge of the Sheep Mountain Wilderness Sheep Mountain Wilderness is a section of the Angeles National Forest which extends north west from the Cucamonga Wilderness. Notable hiking in the area includes Heaton Flats along the East Fork of the San Gabriel River to Bridge to Nowhere. - a rugged, roadless area of the San Gabriel Mountains San Gabriel Mountains, S Calif., E and NE of Los Angeles, running c.50 mi (80 km) westward from Cajon Pass. San Antonio Peak (10,080 ft/3,072 m) is the highest of the range. Citrus fruits are raised on the southern foothills. . ``The conditions Saturday night were so deplorable that I didn't think that anyone could survive the first night,'' Airhart said. Another 6 to 12 inches of snow fell the next night. By the fourth day, searchers were saying there was little hope the boy was alive, though they said he might have found shelter under a tree or bush or in one of the summer campgrounds far below the ridge. Nine members of the Sierra Madre team had gone out Friday to search Bear Gulch, which leads down Blue Ridge toward the East Fork of the San Gabriel River San Gabriel River is the name of watercourses in two states:
The team had a 12-hour window of opportunity to search the steep slope before the next storm, expected to arrive today. ``We just don't give up,'' said Arnold Gaffrey, a member of the team. ``It's amazing what the human body can put up with.'' Thornton's uncle, Marc Shapiro of Huntington Beach, told reporters at a news conference outside the hospital that his nephew was no ``daredevil.'' Gaffrey said Thornton got into trouble because he was snowboarding in an out-of-bounds area. ``He should not have been skiing in that area. They elected to do some of the hillsides. That was a mistake,'' Gaffrey said. In the out-of-bounds areas, the slopes are twice as steep as the toughest sanctioned routes, making it difficult to climb back up if you fall. Thornton, a member of his high school freshman football team and its ski club, had been snowboarding Feb. 7 with his 30-year-old uncle at the Mountain High resort, 50 miles northeast of Los Angeles. Daily News Staff Writer Lee Condon contributed to this story. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos, Map PHOTO (1--Color) A rescuer wheels snowboarder Jeff Thornton, 14, into the emergency room of a hospital in Glendora after he was found Friday. (2) Still clad in his snowboarding outfit, Jeff Thornton arrives at Foothill Presbyterian Hospital on Friday after six days missing in the wild. Andy Holzman/San Gabriel Valley Tribune MAP: (Color) Snowboarder Rescue |
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