New York State Forest Rangers led the efforts in difficult and dramatic rescues from nearly the same spot in the Adirondack High Peaks this week.
On Tuesday, December 13 at 2:25 pm, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s Ray Brook Dispatch office requested Forest Ranger assistance with a hiker who may have broken their ankle near the junction of the trails to Wright and Algonquin Peaks in the High Peaks Wilderness in the town of Keene, Essex County.
Due to the location, Captain Burns requested aviation assistance but high winds and safety concerns kept the New York State Police helicopter grounded. Thirteen Rangers and additional DEC staff and volunteers responded to assist in carrying the injured hiker out of the mountains.
Rangers reached the 21-year-old from Saratoga Springs at 6:45 pm, and administered first aid for the subject’s ankle and hypothermia. An hour and a half later, rescuers used a backpack litter system to begin carrying the subject down the mountain.
Forest Rangers reported that the conditions were treacherous with steep, icy slopes. At 9:37 pm, they reached Adirondak Loj where they were met by a Lake Placid ambulance. The subject was taken to the hospital for further medical care.
The next day, on Wednesday, December 14th, at 12:30 pm, Ray Brook Dispatch requested Forest Ranger assistance with a hiker with an unstable hip injury near the same Wright and Algonquin trail junction.
Seventeen Rangers responded in what they described as extremely hazardous conditions. The subject was in severe pain when Rangers reached him. Rangers began carrying out the 64-year-old from Ballston Lake at 5:37 pm, and safely reached Adirondak Loj at 10:32 pm, where they were met by a Lake Placid ambulance. The hiker was taken to the hospital for further medical care.
Video of the second carry-out is available on the DEC website at https://www.dec.ny.gov/fs/
Photos, from above: hiker with hip injury being rescued; and hiker with ankle injury being rescued (DEC photos).
What is wrong with these people who are highly unqualified and unprepared to take such a hike? Blessed are the rescuers
Its not fair to make an assessment about experience or qualifications. Neither are addressed in the article. Everything has risk, its about understanding, managing & mitigating. Things can go sideways no matter who you are.
Blessed indeed, and thank goodness for our brave and hard working rangers. I would not assume the hikers were unqualified or unprepared. I have hiked most of my life – Andes, Alps, Rockies, Himalaya – and I have seen plenty of mishaps with experienced hikers.