A rescue mission for two hikers ended with a third rescue after a would-be Good Samaritan became lost.

At about 7:20 p.m. Sunday, rescue officials received a call from a couple who were lost in the Tripler Ridge Trail. The area became cloudy and dark, said fire spokesman Capt. Terry Seelig.

Rescue officials suspended their search due to the weather and told the couple to stay put for the night. The couple, who is in their late 20s or early 30s, was rescued at 6:30 a.m. yesterday.

However the couple did not tell rescue officials of a man they had met overnight. The 27-year-old man apparently heard of the lost couple on the evening news, and without telling anyone set off on the trail to help the couple.

Seelig said the man did not bring anything, including a cell phone, flashlight or water. The man met up with the couple on the trail, who told him they were to stay put until first light. The man then borrowed the couple’s cell phone to tell his wife to pick him up at the Windward Community College the next morning.

It wasn’t until about 10:30 a.m. yesterday that the Honolulu Fire Department received calls about the third missing hiker. Rescue officials found the man with an injured ankle about two hours later.

“We urge Good Samaritan volunteers to coordinate with emergency responders,” Seelig said. “Don’t just set out on your own because that might complicate a situation.”