VILLANOW, Ga. — First responders are credited with saving two trapped hikers amid swift-moving waters in north Georgia, Wednesday.
Walker County officials said they were called to a section of East Armuchee Creek just before 9 a.m. in regard to two men who were stranded amid rising water near Manning Mill and East Armuchee roads.
Officials said the two had left on a hiking trip on Tuesday and planned on leaving before sundown. But as the weather worsened in the area, they found crossing the creek in a truck to be an unsafe idea. Spotty cell phone service in the Chattahoochee National Forest left them with little choice - meaning they weren't able to make a successful call until the next morning.
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Once crews finally learned of their plight, firefighters rushed to the scene and set up a special cable system across the creek and attached a rescue vest.
Rescuers also acted as spotters upstream to look for floating debris in case a second rescue was necessary. After nearly an hour, fire crews managed to pull both men to safety.
In all, Walker County Fire Rescue, the Department of Corrections and the Walker County Sheriff's Office helped in the rescue.