Search and Rescue officer killed in hiker rescue honored at vigil

The vivid white of roses stood out against the green landscape as nearly a hundred people honored officer David Vanbuskirk, a Metropolitan Police Department Search and Rescue officer who died in the line of duty.

Vanbuskirk was part of a helicopter rescue operation Monday night near Mary Jane Falls on Mount Charleston. As he and the stranded hiker were being hoisted into the helicopter, Vanbuskirk became unattached from his cables and fell to his death.

The Mount Charleston Baptist Church held a vigil Wednesday night in its prayer garden, which was partially built by another Search and Rescue officer several years ago.

“This was a young man who always had a broad smile,” said pastor Earl Greene at the beginning of the ceremony for Vanbuskirk, who was 36 years old and a 13-year veteran of the department. A former firefighter, Greene spoke of both the danger that comes with that kind of job and the honorable people like Vanbuskirk who pursue such a career.

Greene read messages from Kyle Canyon residents and Las Vegas police officers.

“His laugh and zest for life was infectious,” a fellow Search and Rescue officer wrote of Vanbuskirk.

Metropolitan Police Department officer Robert Hagberg, a resident officer of the Kyle Canyon area, also spoke at the service. He mentioned Vanbuskirk’s eagerness to help in any situation and his level of professionalism.

“The community has always been supportive to us, and this is no different,” Hagberg said of the response that resident officers have received since the accident.

Vanbuskirk, of Henderson, was born and raised in Las Vegas. He was one of seven commissioned officers who conduct rescues. The unit also has 14 pilots, a sergeant and a lieutenant, and a healthy number of volunteers, police said.

At the end of the service, which lasted about half an hour, attendees raised flashlights up and had a moment of silence for Vanbuskirk and in support of his wife, Adriana.

He was the first Metropolitan Police Department officer to be killed on duty since 2009.

The Injured Police Officers Fund set up an account for officer Vanbuskirk’s family with Wells Fargo Bank. Donations can be made to account 6102.