20 hikers were rescued from flooding in popular Virginia hike trail, fire official says

Twenty hikers who had been trapped in a popular trail since Sunday evening in Virginia because of heavy rains that caused flash flooding have been rescued, according to a local fire official.

The hikers were rescued before 10 a.m. Monday on trails around the Devil’s Bathtub Trail in Scott County, Duffield Fire Chief Roger Carter told TV station WCYB.

Rescuers responded to the scene Sunday evening. Multiple emergency crews – including the Fort Blackmore Volunteer Fire Department, Duffield Fire and Rescue, Norton Rescue Squad, and the Appalachia, Gate City and Norton fire departments – helped rescue the hikers.

Carter said the hikers were treated on the scene for minor injuries, like mild hypothermia. One rescued hiker might have a twisted knee, according to JHL.

Emergency crews had to use an alternative route from the original route because it was too dangerous, Carter said.

The Devil's Bathtub is a popular tourist attraction in the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest in southwest Virginia.

A Scott County tourism website posted an alert Friday, warning people that the water along the Devil’s Bathtub Trail is higher than normal because of the heavy rains, and therefore prone to flash flooding.

The U.S. Forest Service closed the trail for the remainder of the Memorial Day weekend.

Contributing: Associated Press