Hiker with dead cell phone rescued after several hours lost in New Hampshire mountains
New Hampshire Fish and Game said the hiker was cold, wet and mildly hypothermic when he was found.
FILE: Kathryn Mckee joins FOX Weather to discuss the harrowing experience of being rescued during a hike gone wrong in white-out winter conditions
Two hikers were rescued after being stranded for hours in severe winter weather conditions near Mount Washington.
BERLIN, N.H.– A hiker from Massachusetts was saved Saturday even after his phone died following a 911 call for help deep in the mountains of New Hampshire.
According to the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, a 57-year-old man became lost off-trail between Weeks and Middle Weeks Mountain without a light and other essential hiking gear, and called 911 on his cell phone at 3:45 Saturday afternoon to get help.
He told the 911 operator that he was wet and cold before the call disconnected.
A conservation officer attempted to call the hiker back several times without any luck. There was concern about rain in the forecast and a risk of hypothermia, so rescue crews went out in search of the lost hiker, using the hiker's last known location from the 911 call.
Conservation officers from NH Fish and Game, the Berlin Fire Department, and Androscoggin Valley Search and Rescue were all involved in the search.
A hiker made his way along the rocks at Artists Bluff in New Hampshire's White Mountains in Franconia, NH on April 28, 2021. (Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe / Getty Images)
After just over 6.5 hours since the initial call for help, AVSAR and the conservation officers were able to locate the hiker in the exact location where he called 911. He was found 4.5 miles from the closest road, NH Fish and Game said.
Rescue crews said the hiker was cold, wet and mildly hypothermic. He had begun his hike at 8 a.m. that day.
Rescue crews gave the man warm, dry clothes, warm liquids and a light.
Together, they all hiked 2.4 miles to where an ATV was waiting to take the hiker the remainder of the way back to where the vehicles were staged.
They reached the staging area at 1:45 a.m. on Sunday.
MASSACHUSETTS HIKERS RESCUED IN CHEST-HIGH SNOW, HIGH WINDS ON MOUNT WASHINGTON
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The hiker explained that he unexpectedly encountered deep snow at Kilkenny Ridge Trail and kept losing the trailhead. He used a mapping program on his phone to relocate the trail, but after continued use he only had enough battery to call 911 and report his location before the phone died.
NH Fish and Game said the hiker has more than 25 years of hiking experience, but was unaware of the snow still on the upper levels of the White Mountains and was unprepared.
The agency reminded hikers to always be prepared, no matter the season. Pack a map, compass, warm clothing, extra food and water, a headlamp, fire starter, first aid kit, whistle, rain/wind jackets and pants and a knife every time. Also, keep cell phones on airplane mode to preserve battery life in case emergency assistance is needed.
For more information about preparing for a hike, NH Fish and Game recommends visiting www.hikeSafe.com.