Woman Recounts How She Became Trapped in Arizona Canyon for 13 Hours While Hiking with a Friend
"I started panicking ... and I slid," she said. "I started going deeper into the canyon and I just slid to the bottom"
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Wildcat Tank Path, Page, ArizonaA woman says she is “glad to be alive” after she was rescued last month from being trapped in a canyon in Arizona for some 13 hours.
On July 19, at 5:30 p.m. local time, authorities from the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office received a notification from the National Park Service that Madison Hart, 26, and a friend were stuck several hundred feet inside the Wildcat Tank Canyon in Arizona, according to USA Today.
Taking to TikTok in a pair of videos in late July, Hart recounted her harrowing experience: She and her friend originally went hiking but were taken by surprise by the high temperatures and grew weaker as they attempted to traverse the canyon through a method known as stemming.
"I started panicking ... and I slid," she said. "I started going deeper into the canyon and I just slid to the bottom."
Related: Man Rescued After Becoming Wedged Between Narrow Rock Walls of Utah Canyon
That’s when Hart said she realized that she was stuck in the canyon from her hips downward and any further movement she attempted was stalled due to the curve of the rock.
Hart said that she was “embarrassed” by the predicament she was in.
"I did not anticipate getting stuck. I did feel like a failure. It was very embarrassing. I never wanted to be those people," she said. "I never did want to waste resources or waste people's time or energy."
Related: 3 Teens Among Group of Hikers Rescued from N.H. Mountain Trail, Officials Say: 'Dangerous Decision'
Hart said her friend tried multiple methods to get help, including lighting a fire and attempting to reach 911 — but there was no phone service in the area.
Luckily, the friend was able to eventually send Snapchat messages to another friend.
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Coconino County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Jon Paxton said that various rescue teams rescued Hart's friend first since she had "climbed out a little further up the canyon and was uninjured" while Hart was pulled out after because she was "another hundred yards back down the canyon," USA Today reported.
Representatives from the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
After being safely removed from the canyon by the Page Fire Department, Hart said she was flown to a local hospital for evaluation of her kidneys and dehydration and was sent home the next day.
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