Google Maps sent Utah driver down this ‘shortcut’ from hell
A driver had to be rescued from a Utah mountain after following a “shortcut” on Google Maps.
The unidentified man, 23, was rescued from Strawberry just after midnight Thursday night, according to Wasatch County Search and Rescue.
Officials said the man was trapped in his Toyota Turcell on the west side of the mountaintop and it took three hours to complete the rescue operation.
Footage captured by rescue workers shows the blue vehicle sitting on a rocky dirt road, with rescuers having to use off-road vehicles to reach the driver.
According to rescuers, the man ended up on the hill via a recommended shortcut from Google Maps.
Officials said the man was trapped in his Toyota Turcell on the west side of the peak and the rescue operation took three hours
Images captured by rescue teams show the blue vehicle on a rocky dirt track, with teams having to use all-terrain vehicles to reach the driver
A statement said: ‘The 911 emergency response center received a call from a stranded motorist.
The 23-year-old man was trapped in his Toyota Turcell on the west side of Strawberry Peak.
This was the shorter route Google recommended between Springville and Vernal.
‘The driver was not injured, but had to be transported off the mountain. SAR teams arrived on the scene and provided assistance.’
This comes after Google changed a part of their maps that left drivers in Utah stranded on a different mountain.
Emery County Sheriff Tyson Huntington said ABC4 that they receive calls for help several times a month from a remote road on East Mountain.
Huntington said the problem was that people would use Google Maps and just type in the state name of Utah and it would automatically take them to a remote area.
In all cases, search and rescue teams were able to help the victims and their cars off the mountain.
An 18-wheel truck towing a 53-foot refrigerated trailer full of Red Bull (pictured) became stuck in the mud after the navigation system directed the driver onto the road
A map of the road before Google implemented the correction in their navigation system
Due to the issues, the sheriff’s office contacted Google, who eventually made the necessary changes.
The worst case, according to the sheriff, involved an 18-wheeler and trailer that got stuck in the mud after the system threw the driver off the road.
After the incident, the sheriff contacted Google and the news outlet and said they were “super excited” to hear back.
“We use multiple sources to update the map, including community contributions, information from local authorities, along with Street View and satellite imagery,” a Google spokesperson told News4.
‘We have updated this route on our map and it should be visible in the coming days.’
Huntington indicated that the issue had already been resolved before Google responded.