Renee Pollrich, a university student from Germany, hikes a trail down above Huntington Ravine on Mt. Washington, New Hampshire, . Photo:
Getty
Three men from Massachusetts were safely rescued after getting stranded in “white out conditions” on Mount Lincoln in New Hampshire on Sunday, Feb. 9, according to a New Hampshire Fish and Game Tuesday, Feb. 11 statement.
Jack Tragni, 24, Vaishnav Raja, 25, and Justin Yang, 24, departed on Sunday morning around 9 a.m. for a hike from the mountain’s Falling Waters Trail to Franconia Ridge.
“Progress across the ridge was slowed by deep snow and white out conditions making the trail difficult to follow,” but once they went over Mount Lincoln “they felt turning back wasn’t the prudent decision so continued on,” per the NH Fish and Game statement.
Hours later, at 5:30 p.m., the Conservation Officers with NH Fish and Game were issued an SOS alert from the area of Mount Lincoln.
The Rescue Coordination Center received an alert from a Garmin device — which allows for an “interactive SOS message with your GPS coordinates to the Garmin Response 24/7-staffed emergency response coordination center,” per the official site. “Admittedly, they panicked when they activated the SOS on their device but they knew it would take hours for rescuers to get to their location,” read the NH Fish and Game statement.
The men then reported via text message that they were experiencing white-out conditions and suffering from cold weather-related injuries. However, due to the cold and windy conditions, they could not continue texting the rescuers.
The response team tracked them near the Mount Lafayette summit, and the Pemi Valley Search and Rescue Team’s conservation officers and volunteers responded to the trailhead. Around 7:30 p.m., the hikers began a slow descent of Mount Lafayette towards the Greenleaf Hut at the same time the rescuers were approaching the Old Bridle Path.
Nearly two hours later at 9:10 p.m., the first rescuers found the men below Greenleaf Hut. After, the rescuers provided them with replacement light sources because the hikers’ lights died beforehand. Then, the men and rescuers went back to the trailhead and arrived back safely by 10:20 p.m.
“The group was fairly well prepared for winter conditions but lacked experience above treeline,” read the NH Fish and Game statement. “This was a training hike for Mount Washington which is now put on hold.”
“Without the dedication of highly skilled volunteer groups such as the Pemi Valley Search and Rescue Team, search and rescue in New Hampshire would not be as efficient,” officials said.
The NH Fish and Game also advised that hikers prepare diligently for winter hikes by packing the 10 essential items: Map, compass, warm clothing, extra food and water, headlamp, fire starter, First Aid kit, whistle, a knife, rain/wind jackets and pants.
