Rock climber rescued by helicopter after falling about 60 feet on Mount Washington
WMUR, WDSU, LUKAS LAMB WOTTON, NEW HAMPSHIRE FISH AND GAME, NEW HAMPSHIRE NATIONAL GUARD, CNN
By Imani Fleming
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SARGENT’S PURCHASE, New Hampshire (WMUR) — A rock climber was rescued by a New Hampshire Army National Guard helicopter after falling about 60 feet on Mount Washington, authorities said.
New Hampshire Fish and Game said around 1 p.m. Wednesday, they got a call about a climber who was seen falling in the area of Pinnacle Buttress on the upper end of Huntington Ravine.
“I’d say this was one of the more technical ones that we’ve done,” said Staff Sgt. Andy Morgan, a critical care flight paramedic with the New Hampshire Army National Guard.
Two other climbers in the general area saw the fall and went over to the injured rock climber, a man in his 30s from New Orleans, Louisiana, and called in his severe injuries, Fish and Game said.
“Not all the time are they on a cliffside like this. This part. Individual was hurt pretty bad,” Morgan said.
The Army National Guard helicopter hoisted the climber after 3 p.m. using new rescue equipment, Fish and Game said.
“The New Hampshire Army National Guard did a phenomenal job. They were able to hoist the climber from the headwall of Huntington Ravine without having to land,” said Sgt. Matthew Holmes with New Hampshire Fish and Game.
The man was treated in the helicopter and flown to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon.
The extent of his injuries are unknown but the observations by the volunteers showed his injuries were serious, Fish and Game said.
“So the area that this incident occurred in is not all that remote, but it is very high up on Mount Washington, extremely hard to get to. And if this accident was not seen, I would believe that the chances of the climber’s survival would be extremely diminished,” Holmes said.
Holmes said this rescue was all about teamwork from the Army National Guard to the other nearby climbers.
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