Hawaii Fire Department personnel rescued an injured hiker on the banks of the Wailuku River at Boiling Pots above Hilo late this morning.
According to a media release, seven units, including a county helicopter, responded to the 11:37 a.m. alarm with the first unit arriving on scene six minutes later.
The chopper lowered three fire rescue specialists onto the river bank. They placed the injured hiker, a man in his 20s, on a spine board as a precaution before loading him into a litter for extraction.
The helicopter flew the injured man to a waiting ambulance, which took him to the Hilo Medical Center, emergency room, where he was in stable condition.
In the release, the department reminded visitors and residents “of the access and hazard warning signs along the Wailuku River.”