Two Hikers Found Safe After All-Night Catskills Search
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On Thursday afternoon, two bochurim with special needs were separated from their hiking group near Ice Cave Mountain in the Catskills. Within hours, Chavivim was dispatched and a multi-agency search was launched that would run all night and into the next morning.
The Call Goes Out
Our dispatchers immediately activated Hatzalah of Catskills SAR, who took command on the scene under their yellow Catskills Hatzalah Command tent — the central node our members pushed in and out of all night long.
From there, the response grew quickly — volunteers from Chavivim joined teams from Matzil, Commsar, the NY State Police, the NYS DEC Forest Rangers, the NYS Police Drone Unit, and Shandaken Police.
Different uniforms, different patches — one shared mission: find Yehuda ben Chaya Gitel and Yoel ben Hudis Sheindel, and bring them home.
An Overnight Search in Brutal Conditions
The first night of the search was met with extremely low visibility, dense fog, rain, and slippery wet ground — exactly the conditions that make a Catskills wilderness search dangerous for everyone involved.
Crews worked in coordinated teams, sweeping assigned grids while command processed updates and adjusted tasking. The radios stayed busy. Hot coffee, dry gloves, fresh batteries — all the small details that keep a long search functional — moved through staging without slowing the operation.
Hundreds of Volunteers
By morning, hundreds of volunteers from various organizations had cycled through staging. As weather lifted, drones joined the air search. Search headquarters had to ask additional spontaneous volunteers to stand down unless specifically called — a sign of just how many people answered the call.
Orange County Reinforcements at First Light
By 10:25 AM, additional Orange County Chavivim teams were dispatched to assist as the search shifted into its most intense phase. Drones swept overhead while ground crews moved through the brush. Command kept narrowing the search corridor.
Found — Safe and Sound
Around midmorning, search crews spotted one of the bochurim. The second was located shortly after, only about 50 feet away. Both were dehydrated and slightly injured, but otherwise safe and sound. They were transported to the hospital for evaluation and treatment.
Two families that could have woken up to the worst news woke up to the best news instead. Volunteers who had been on their feet for 12+ hours were finally able to stand down.
Why It Matters
This is exactly the scenario our SAR members train for every second Sunday — and exactly the scenario where that training pays off. Field navigation, command structure, working under fatigue, holding a grid pattern overnight in the rain — all of it on display in one operation.
It is also a vivid reminder of how much can get done when every agency in a region works the same radio together. No one organization could have run this op alone. The system worked because everyone showed up.
מי כעמך ישראל
Who is like Your nation, Israel.
Photos courtesy of Boro Park 24. Original recap shared by @chavivim_org on Instagram.