Glen Keane Meets First Responders Who Rescued Him From Mummy Mountain
Legendary Disney animator Glen Keane found himself in a scary situation last month when he was rescued by the Phoenix Fire Department while hiking on Mummy Mountain.
Keane, 72, was hiking with his grandchildren early in the morning when he determined that the narrow path in front of him was too difficult to traverse.
Photo: Variety
“By the time I got to what I think of as a rocky stegosaurus ridge, I thought, ‘I can’t make this next gap,'” he said (via WKYC). “That gap was a dangerous one that I couldn’t make, and then these guys came along.”
Eventually, Keane called for help from the Phoenix Fire Department, who airlifted him by helicopter off the mountain.
Photo: D23
Back at the landing zone, Keane declined transportation to the hospital.
Keane’s Visit to the Fire Department
Just weeks after Keane was rescued, he returned to the Phoenix Fire Department to thank the first responders.
Photo: D23
“Thank you, thank you again,” Keane told the rescuers as he greeted them. “I can’t just go off into the sunset and be happy. I felt like I needed to say, ‘Thank you’ to what you guys did. Thank you all. Words fail me. I’m really touched.”
According to Phoenix Fire Captain Patrick O’Neill, the team quickly jumped into action upon receiving Keane’s call.
Photo: D23
“It was 8:30 a.m.,” said Phoenix Fire Captain Patrick O’Neill. “We could tell he was in a weird spot. I called him to verify the location and the nature of any injury and he answered the phone and said, ‘I’m stuck.’ He said he was on a ledge and that it was a far fall on both sides and he didn’t feel like moving. I told him to stay there.”
A Piece of Art and Plenty of Thanks
When Keane returned to the fire department this week, he not only thanked each member of the rescue team, but also presented them with a piece of personalized artwork depicting the rescue.
“To have somebody come back and show gratitude means so much,” O’Neill said. “Sometimes people get in their car and just drive away. This is super special.”
“I’ve done a lot of animated fairy tales,” Keane said. “But this was a real-life one, and I really wanted to see the crew who were responsible for that.”
Photo: MickeyBlog
