PHOENIX — For years there's been an urban legend that Phoenix firefighters pull more hikers off the mountain trails during spring break than at any other time of the year.
It makes sense: there are more people vacationing here from out of state for spring training, or even just to escape the snow back home. And most of them probably haven't ever hiked Camelback Mountain.
But 12News looked at the records of every Phoenix Fire Department call for the last three years and found...it's not true.
Statistically, Phoenix fire is more likely to be called out to a mountain rescue on Jan. 2.
Over the last three years, there have been nine mountain rescues on Jan. 2. And it's not an outlier either. Of the top five days with mountain rescues, three of them are in January. One is Feb. 2 and the other is Sept. 5.
And when you calculate just the number of mountain rescues that happen in March over the last three years, you find that March is average.
Of all the days of the year that have mountain rescues, it's most common to have two rescues in a day. For the month of March, it's exactly the same. The average of all mountain rescues for the year is also almost exactly the same for March.
And so far this March, Phoenix Fire Captain Todd Keller said it's been quiet.
"We haven’t had too many and the ones we have had have been really minor injuries," Keller said.
Still, Phoenix fire doesn't want you to be careless just because you're hiking on a "slow" day. Bring water, dress for the hike, and make sure it's not too hot for you.
Up to Speed
Catch up on the latest news and stories on our 12News YouTube playlist here.