The man is my brother-in-law. He was descending when someone above him dropped a cellphone or something. He tried to grab it and started sliding. He finally stopped the slide on some small toe hold. He couldn't move without sliding more; he was stuck. The quick thinking of the people there (which included his sister and some friends) and the heroic actions of James Williams saved his life.
@Joe Weber this idiot. STAY inside the cables dumb ass !! Who cares about a stupid cell phone. Putting all these others at risk to save him because hes an idiot !!
That's my amazing husband!! HE IS A HERO!!! Thanks to his quick thinking, even under so much pressure, he was able to save a life. And thanks to the people down the mountain for helping. It wouldn't have been possible without such awesome teamwork.
I take people up there all the time, and know how real the danger can be. This brought me to tears. Thank God for the goodness of others. Those people are heroes!
I've been climbing in Yosemite for years and have descended the cables numerous times. They are great and we generally come down on the outside to give more room to the hikers. But no one I climb with would leave the cables unroped regardless of what we dropped. The glacial polished granite in the valley can be very hard to read especially on descent. And it's sandy in places. It definitely deserves more respect than it is often afforded.
I went up several times, the last was in 1992, and no one roped-up back then. That last time, when we were on the way down, a great big guy froze-up and was holding both cables so a lot of people were backed up. We decided it would be safer to go on the outside, and we did with no ropes, it was pretty wild.
I am a family member of the man who saved this hiker. The hiker went off the trail to pick something up and slipped down the rock until he got caught there on his back in that crevice. (about an 8,000 ft drop below) My cousin took off running down the trail to find help while my cousin-in-law James Williams came up with this plan to use the cable as a rope by pulling each pole out and swinging it over. He could not swing the cable over by himself (these poles are very heavy and made of metal) so with the help of other hikers below, they were able to swing it over to the man so he could grab it and walk safely back. Film cred to my uncle
Dear Lord. I flew in the Navy…never had a fear of heights…..but I could not believe how my palms sweated watching this. In law enforcement, we used to say, a good day was any day when everyone “goes home”. This, thank God, turned out to be a “good day”. Whew.
I'm guessing it eventually happened, but at least in this clip I noticed the guy who was rescued seemed to thank everyone but the guy who actually risked his life to do so. You can see how taxing it was for him to do, because he tries to stand up at one point and just falls back down because his legs simply give out from the stress of being on them all that time during the rescue. I would have been wrapped around that dude in forever gratitude.
I know the man who was saved; we hiked HD 3 years running. He’s an experienced hiker who’s done this before & simply lost his grip on the cables. Ironically, the last year we went, he did the entire hike & then turned around to rescue members of his group who’d gotten disoriented. If you’ve done Half Dome, imagine finishing the hike & then going back up Vernal Falls & leading 2 people down in the dark. Heroism comes full circle! :) So glad you're okay, Terry, and special thanks to YOUR rescuers!
That is some serious hero cred. God was with you both. My palms were sweating just watching this. 99% of people wouldn't have had the courage. Well done.
Bravo!! Do not take HD for granted. It is serious stuff. We scaled it three days before this rescue, and discovered we were way out of our league halfway up. (at our ages- LOL). We prepared for the vertical hiking for months, but not for the arm strength needed for the cables. Heroes all the way around, here.
I've been in your shoes, and you never quiet get comfortable with being called hero, but there is no doubt you saved a man's life that day. I've also been up Half Dome and had someone above me drop a water bottle. If you've been there, you know how steep it is and how AMAZINGLY calm you'd have to be to come up with the plan to use the cables to rescue him, and how brave you'd have to be to step out on the face alone outside them... Wear your title proudly, hero.
Yes the cable supports/poles are not hard cemented into the rock and will pull out if a person wants to lift them out inadvertently or not. Ive done this hike/climb 4 times in my life and Im sure they have been "loose" since my first ascent in 1978. The NPS takes the cable system down every Fall so I guess they wouldn't want to cement the poles into the rock. Despite what you have heard this is NOT a death defying, suicidal hike, just use your wits, concentrate on good footing and take measured steps.
It is death defying to me. It’s funny how people who’ve climbed this dome countless times don’t call it death defying. Anything that is higher than three stories is death defying.
Than you guys for rescuing my family member! This guy is my great great great great grandaddy. He dropped his cane an eyepiece on the way up and ran over the ot edge to get to get it and he slipped and fell. It almost gave me a a heart attack. I was .02 years old at the time but is still remember it as clear as day!
The cable route is not really dangerous, if you are prepared. Gloves: a must. 2 hands on the cables at all times. It is about a steep as a flight of stairs. To me, the scariest part is other climbers. I wonder of some of these falls were the result of hit by someone coming down. I have seen items dropped midway up the cables. Zing! Right over the side at high speed. If you drop your phone on that route, LET IT GO!
I’m related to the guy who fell. We make soaps out of bees wax and fermented yak piss. He was up there trying to give out free samples and accidentally stepped on a bar of soap and slipped. Thankfully the guy up top didn’t get a free sample so he saved my relative to get a free bar of soap. I’m forever thankful.
I was surprised to read the poles actually come out of the granite ! I sure hope they drilled the holes for the poles really deep into the granite?? Glad he was rescued. Kudos to James William's. Hope he was formally recognized?
They are about 5-6inches deep. They come out easily but the cables are bolted down so it really doesnt matter other than not allowing another rest spot
Not sure how you got there, but glad you are safe. I hope the incident was reported to the Rangers to make sure cables are once again in the safest postion for all new visitors to Half Dome. Be safe in all your new adventures.
This guy is risking his life and he has to be accurate as hell to save someone else and the cameraman can’t even keep the shot in focus. You had one job
How did he get off the cables ? Back in 08 I had to tie a rope around a woman's waist and mine as she froze on the cables coming down, she was hyperventilating and I had to assure everything will be OK..we took one step at a time, another guy helped behind me and when we got down I was unable to open my hands and move my fingers and she whispered that's the safest I ever felt in a man's arms gave me a kiss on the cheek. I asked why are you doing this if your afraid of heights she was with alumi to hike the dome for a 40th bday. You Cali girls rock 😘 I went bk 10 yrs later in 2018 and hiked it again when i got lucky and won the lottery.
I can't believe how lucky this hiker was...one for finding that crack to making stop the slide and second..having that guy with quick think the balls to pull the safe....amazing. Now..the park learning from this incredible crazy situation must have long safety ropes at the bottom label for emergency use only..put it in some kind of fire glass type box to be broken just if needed. It would make saving some one like this much easier and safer.
They pulled the cables out of their attachments. That is smart: a ready made rescue line. The cables are left on the mountain all year, but the posts are removed because water would get in the post holes, freeze, and crack the granite. The poles are loosely set the the holes, fortunate in this case. That was quick thinking.Good Job!
Dude, I was there when this happened. I was coming down behind the dude who tried to retrieve his cell phone battery when he dropped his phone. I came down pretty quick, and had to pass that stuff up. The Helicopter was called in cuz it was late in the day. The Rescue Team was already hiking up fast, and I did not have a Permit, so I got well out of there ($5,000 Fine). While switching from climbing shoes to Hiking Boots I seen this dude come up with taking the upright galvanized poles out to have the cable reach him. VERY mpressive.. I was down by then I came down while this was going on past that because there was nothing when I looked back up this guy was stripping out the polls and he definitely save that guy because the rescue crew came up. I don’t know about 40 minutes later or 30 minutes later I’m not sure and helicopter couldn’t land so it was too windy. But I remember the guy who was doing the film, kept saying James that guy life I remember the guys name is James
He may not have gone off trail intentionally. The description said he tried to catch a falling phone and slipped. How do you know he was not on the trail when he tried to catch the phone? He may have even been trying to catch it to prevent it from striking someone below. Couch quarterbacking.
@Joe Weber You're wrong. I only respond because I have firsthand knowledge. He was far higher up ON THE CABLES (i.e., did not go off route), when he lost his grip and that was the direction he slid. That man has hiked Half Dome and had gone up and down the cables on at least three separate occasions. He wasn't doing anything risky, wasn't taking chances or being irresponsible, just lost his grip. It's a beautiful, wonderful hike but obviously can be dangerous even for experienced hikers. This isn't an example of some idiot taking unnecessary risks, it's an example that this can happen to anybody. Be careful.
it is amazing to me that there was no coverage- park keeps things hush- I am on trail crew (trail crew primarily put up and take down cable route each season)-I went up to meet ranger next morning to put the poles back in. I think this guy has quick wits and balls and ability to lead... he had others throw the poles from holes(still attached to cable, in order to pull this rescue off. the guy who gets rescued fell when someone above him dropped a cell phone and he tried to catch it(while on cable route).... It gets me that a few attitudes within park toward the rescuer, painted him as a fool(that would be the 1% club)(one with this attitude was a boss 3 levels above me... this boss was a fool)
the rescuer did a fine job...but the guy that tried to catch the cell is a fool ...putting his life and the rescuer's life on the line just to save a phone....
So which is the full story? Did the guy try to grab a falling cell phone while he was between the cables, or was he trying to be a hero and go off trail to get the cell phone? Two completely different stories. If he was within the cables and lost his footing while trying to grab the phone, than my heart goes out to him, but If he left the safety of the cables, than thats on him. I would not want any family member of mine risking their life to save someone who has no regard for their own safety and the safety of others. The whole story needs to be told here.
James Williams is for sure a hero! What an AMAZING group of people and their team work. You all get my kudos. Not sure how or why the situation started, not relevant but glad everyone was/is safe and the rangers got things put back together.
oh my god i just started this video. does he/she survive? i cant watch! ok so he does. the rescuer so woofed cant stand up. he needed tending to. good job!
you really did upload it! thanks. i'm part of the group that went up and down at almost the same time as you guys (i was wearing the team usa basketball jersey)
At amusement parks you often see warnings to make sure your phones etc are properly secured so they don't fall out on the rides. A similar warning at the bottom of the cables might be good.
I'd say if youre dumb enough to risk losing your grip and your life because you want a selfie you deserve what you get. A $600 phone isn't something I'd risk my life for. Natural selection at work.
This is my cousin’s sisters boyfriends, father-in-laws half brother. He’s absolutely a hero! I’m so thankful to have been on the phone with all of this happening. I actually should be getting thanked for this because I walked him through the whole process, but some hero’s are never known.
thank you to all my family in the comments, all 276 family members for knowing what we all know and our relation to who we all know, wish peace on this comment section