On Wednesday, May 26, 2021 at approximately 7:20 pm, Gallatin County Sheriff Search and Rescue in Big Sky responded to a request for assistance from two hikers that fell into the South Fork of the Gallatin River. The first individual slipped and fell into the river and the second individual jumped into the water to assist. The pair made it out of the water, but on the opposite side of the river from the Ousel Falls Trail.

Search and Rescue Volunteers, Big Sky Fire Dept. and Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office responded and helped the stranded individuals. All parties made it safely out to the trailhead. Both of the individuals were assessed by Big Sky Fire Department personnel for cold exposure but were released on scene.

Sheriff Springer would like to remind individuals when recreating outdoors to be aware of the dangers of going into moving water and to watch your footing around moving water, especially during spring runoff when riverbanks are extremely unstable.