NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. — Seven U.S. Air Force Airmen assigned to Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada were honored by the Air Force now for acts of heroism during a hiking trip in Utah earlier this month.
According to the Air Force, the Airmen rescued 4 people, including a pregnant woman, when flash flooding hit Zion National Park. The Airmen were honored Monday during a coining ceremony.
Airman 1st Classes Will Martin, Demarcus Norman, Maximos Olade, Jacob Stillwell, and Rony Lopez-Aguilar, plus Airmen Andres Parra and Christian Reyes were hiking along a popular hiking trail when the Air Force says Martin noticed the river rising.
The group made their way to higher ground when they spotted a woman floating on her back who, according to the group, appeared battered, blue, and lifeless.
Norman acted quickly and was able to pull the woman from the river to the shore. The group says she was barely responsive for an hour as the team called for help.
The Airmen were advised by rescue personnel to move down the canyon to an area where air evacuations would be possible. As they made their way, the woman they rescued from the river told them that she was pregnant and had been traveling with three others.
The team eventually reunited the woman with her husband and encountered the other two people. One of the others was on the opposite side of the river with an injured knee. Another female traveler appeared to be alright, having been pushed to safety by the rushing water.
To save the man on the other side of the river, the Airmen formed a human chain to get him across. Linked arm-in-arm, the team was able to bring the man across the rushing waters and transported the victims to safety, where they could be air-evacuated.
The Air Force says the Airmen exemplified, "the Air Force's core values of Integrity First, Service Before Self, and Excellence in All We Do."
