Wash. Firefighters Rescue Army Paratroopers from Trees

Feb. 22, 2013
The wind blew paratroopers into the trees during a training exercise.

JOINT BASE LEWIS-McCHORD, Wash. (AP) - The Army says firefighters have rescued three paratroopers who got stuck in trees after they jumped from an aircraft in a training exercise in Washington state.

Joe Piek is a spokesman for Joint Base Lewis-McChord south of Seattle. He says all three were unhurt after getting stuck in trees near one of the base's drop zones on a windy Thursday afternoon.

He didn't have many details but says the big, wide-open drop zones are surrounded by trees, and parachutes can drift off course if winds change or increase during a jump.

Piek says firefighters from both Thurston County and the base responded.

The rescue took place in a thickly wooded area near the town of Rainier.

Copyright 2013 Courier, The (Findlay, OH)Distributed by Newsbank, Inc. All Rights Reserved

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