WHITE COUNTY, Ga. — White County first responders handled 59 calls for service over the weekend, including a mountain rescue, a fireworks-related burn injury and a crash with entrapment, according to Public Safety Public Information Officer Bryce Barrett.
Fire and EMS personnel responded to the calls between 5 p.m. Friday, March 20, and 8 a.m. Monday, March 23. Most of the incidents were medical in nature, Barrett said.
One of the more complex calls came Saturday afternoon at Duke’s Creek Falls, where crews were dispatched around 1:06 p.m. for a reported mountain rescue. A man who had fallen and suffered a fracture was located about 50 feet off the trail down a steep embankment.
Fire and EMS crews hiked into the area while White County Emergency Management deployed a drone to assist in locating the patient. Due to the terrain and the patient’s condition, officials requested an aerial long-line rescue from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Aviation Unit.
Responders moved the patient to a nearby observation deck to improve access while additional crews established a landing zone in the Smithgall Woods area. The patient was successfully airlifted and transported by White County EMS to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville. Crews cleared the scene around 5:45 p.m.
Later Saturday evening, at about 8:32 p.m., White County 911 received a report of a person suffering burns in a fireworks-related incident at a home on Silver Falls Road. Cleveland Fire Department and White County EMS responded, and AirLife was requested due to the severity of the injuries.
Fire personnel established a landing zone at Mountain View Baptist Church, where EMS transferred care of the patient to the AirLife crew for transport.
Early Monday morning, at 7:54 a.m., first responders were dispatched to a motor vehicle crash at the intersection of Highway 115 West and Highway 284. Initial reports indicated injuries and a blocked roadway.
Upon arrival, crews found one individual entrapped in a vehicle. Firefighters extricated the patient while EMS requested an additional ambulance. Two people were transported for treatment — one to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville and another to Northeast Georgia Medical Center Habersham.
Barrett said the incidents reflect a busy but typical weekend for White County’s emergency services.
