Crew rescues 2 hikers northeast of Seattle in heavy snow

GRANITE FALLS, Wash. (AP) — A search-and-rescue team found two hikers stranded in whiteout conditions Monday northeast of Seattle on Three Fingers mountain in the Cascades. The Daily Herald reports the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue unit was alerted around Sunday of the two hikers stuck at 6,800 feet on the mountain. The sheriff’s office says they couldn’t climb down because of heavy snow. A helicopter dropped crews partly up the mountain around 4:30 p.m. Sunday when visibility allowed. The teams then hiked for hours in heavy snow before they found the two hikers and helped them down. The Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Unit recommends people wait until next year to do that hike.