Man Rescued Hours After Leg Gets Stuck In Quicksand At Zion

An Arizona man was rescued hours after his leg became stuck up to his knee in quicksand at Zion National Park in Utah. The man had to be rescued over Presidents Day weekend amid frigid temperatures and snow.

According to the National Parks Service, dispatch at the park received a report of a 34-year-old man whose leg became stuck in quicksand on Saturday afternoon. The man had been hiking with a woman and the pair were unable to free his leg.

The woman had to hike approximately three hours before she received cellphone service and was able to call 911, the NPS said. The woman had to be tended to by rangers because she was showing signs of hypothermia.

Rangers found the man several hours later. He was suffering from exposure, hypothermia and external injuries.

The rangers were finally able to free the man's leg from the quicksand later into the night. They then began to treat and warm his leg and stayed with the man overnight as an additional four inches of snow fell.

A helicopter from the Utah Department of Public Safety extricated the man Sunday afternoon after a break in the weather allowed for better visibility. He was then taken to the hospital.

The NPS warned that winter conditions at Zion National Park can be extreme, especially in higher elevations and can make "easy hikes difficult and strenuous ones treacherous."

Photo: This Sept. 16, 2015, file photo, shows Zion National Park, near Springdale, Utah. Photo by Rick Bowmer, File/Associated Press