Human Interest 12-Year-Old Boy Scout Rescues Couple and Injured Dog Who Got Lost on Hawaii Trail: 'It's Like Joy' David King and his mom Christine built a stretcher for the 100-pound blue nose pitbull using a broken tree branch and their shirts By Joelle Goldstein Joelle Goldstein Instagram Twitter Joelle Goldstein is the Staff Editor of TV for PEOPLE Digital. She has been with the brand for five years, beginning her time as a digital news writer, where she covered everything from entertainment news to crime stories and royal tours. Since then, she has worked as a writer-reporter on the Human Interest team and an associate editor on the TV team. In her current role, Joelle helps oversee all things TV, and enjoys being able to say she has to watch The Kardashians, America's Got Talent, Love Is Blind and Dancing with the Stars for her "work" responsibilities. Prior to joining PEOPLE, Joelle was employed at The Hollywood Reporter, where she was co-nominated at the 2019 GLAAD Media Awards for Outstanding Magazine Article for feature cover story. She graduated from Ithaca College with a Bachelor's degree in Television-Radio (and an appearance in the NCAA Women's Volleyball Final Four!) People Editorial Guidelines Published on November 17, 2021 03:51 PM Share Tweet Pin Email A 12-year-old child put his Boy Scouts skills to good use when he helped rescue a couple and their injured dog who became lost on a Hawaii trail. David King told Fox/CW-affiliate KHON-TV that he was finishing up a 15-mile hike on theWaimano Trail to earn his Boy Scouts Merit Badge on Aug. 29 when he came across a local couple, only identified JD and Aimee. David, who was with his mom Christine at the time, said the couple had their dog Smokey with them — a blue nose pitbull weighing approximately 100 pounds, per CNN — and he was injured. "We asked, 'Oh, do you need any help?' And they said, 'Yeah,'" David recalled to KHON. "They showed us the dog's paws, it had some cuts on it. So, it hurt when the dog would walk. When the dog would walk, it would just be really painful." "We encountered them with about two to three miles left in the hike," David added to CNN. "It wasn't obvious [that something was wrong]." The young boy and his mom later learned that JD, Aimee and Smokey had taken a wrong turn on the hike and gotten lost, according to KHON. Mo. Boy Scouts Rescue Drowning Woman from Flooded Park: 'Very Heroic' As darkness fell, the couple began to panic, as they had no food or water and no way of contacting anyone because their cell phone was dead, KHON reported. David and Christine immediately jumped into action, with the 12-year-old — who is part of the St. John Vianney troop 311 in Kailua — first attempting to carry Smokey on his back, per KHON. However, when he realized that the dog was far too heavy, David tapped into the skills he had learned as a Boy Scout and decided to make a stretcher for the injured animal. "We built them a stretcher using a big tree branch that we broke in half and used our shirts and slid it on using the armholes to fit the sticks through," David explained to KHON, noting that he learned the technique from his older brother, who is an Eagle Scout. "It was [David's] idea to make the stretcher," Christine added to the outlet. "We didn't think it would work because we didn't think the dog would get onto the stretcher. Smokey was just very happy to get on the stretcher. We just carried him out." RELATED VIDEO: Hiker Falls from Ledge and Dies One Day After Posting Dramatic Cliffside Instagram Photo Though effective, it was not an easy process, with the quartet rotating their carrying duties until they had safely made it off the trail, according to KHON. "It was really tough, but we rotated," said David, who told the outlet it was also exhausting because he played in a soccer game before the hike. "Sometimes we did four people, two on each side," he continued to KHON. "[Or] two people — my mom and the man — and then the dog would get off and walk some, which was really helpful and let us relax." Once they made it to the parking lot, JD and Aimee took their dog to get medical attention, according to the outlet. David and Christine told CNN they've since checked in with the couple to make sure everyone has recovered. Injured Hiker Rescued After Spending 14 Days Stranded in New Mexico Forest Now that both parties are home and safe, David and his mom are hoping others will learn from the scary experience. "Our hikes [in Hawaii] are a little tricky," Christine warned, per CNN. "You could be on an 'easy' hike and all of a sudden, you're on a ridge." "Make sure that whenever you're doing an activity, think of what can go wrong and how you can prevent it," David told KHON. The boy also urged others to bring essentials with them when hiking, including a pocket knife, flashlight, first aid kit, rain gear, extra food, water, clothing, sunscreen, fire-starting essentials and a map of the area with a compass, CNN reported. Mother and Her Teenage Son Rescued from Colo. Wilderness After Getting Lost During Hike Above all, David is just thrilled that he was able to put his Boy Scout skills to use — and save multiple lives. "I think that when you help someone out, it's like joy in you, that... you know you did something good that day," David told KHON. "To help someone using my Boy Scout skills makes me feel accomplished because it shows I've learned something and it wasn't all in one ear and out the other," he added to CNN. "Always listen to instructions and what you are learning in class."