CNN
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A hiker rescued from “treacherous” circumstances on a path close to Mt. Washington in New Hampshire’s Presidential Mountain Vary died after affected by extreme hypothermia, state officers mentioned Monday.
Xi Chen, 53, of Andover, Massachusetts, was trying to hike the Gulfside Path within the Presidential Vary when he was “overcome by extreme climate circumstances,” in line with a New Hampshire Fish and Recreation (NHFG) information launch.
The hiker’s partner referred to as the company Saturday round 6:30 p.m. after Chen despatched her a textual content message telling her he was “chilly and moist and couldn’t proceed on” and that he “felt he would die with out a rescue,” in line with one other information launch issued Sunday.
NHFG officers had already obtained a number of calls that day from chilly and moist hikers asking for rescues, nearly all of whom had been traversing excessive elevations within the Presidential Vary, the discharge mentioned. Because of the “dire nature” of the decision about Chen, rescue crews responded instantly and referred to as for added assets, together with officers from across the state and Mountain Rescue Companies personnel.
“The circumstances within the excessive peaks had been treacherous: freezing temperatures, rain, sleet, snow, and winds gusting over 80 mph. Solely these with the expertise, coaching, and satisfactory gear had been utilized for this rescue,” the discharge mentioned. In complete, 9 mountain rescue personnel and 6 conservation officers responded to aim to rescue Chen, in line with NHFG.
Two groups of rescuers had been dropped off close to the summit at round 9:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. and hiked by “driving rain, blowing snow, and sustained 50-60 mph winds with gusts over 80 mph” to succeed in the situation Chen was believed to be in, the discharge mentioned. Because of the buildup of ice on the highway, chains had been positioned on the tires of park vans to drive rescuers to the summit.
At about 10:38 p.m., the primary rescue crew discovered Chen, who was “unresponsive and in a extremely hypothermic state,” the discharge mentioned. Rescuers instantly positioned a short lived shelter over him and tried to heat him up, it mentioned.
After detecting indicators of life, rescuers carried him over a mile to the summit of Mt. Washington, in line with the discharge.
On the summit, Chen was positioned in a truck and pushed to a ready ambulance that transported him to the Androscoggin Valley Hospital in Berlin, about 24 miles northeast of the Mt. Washington summit, NHFG mentioned.
Life saving efforts had been carried out on Chen for a number of hours however he couldn’t be revived and was pronounced useless, NHFG mentioned.
Lots of the hikers who referred to as for rescues Saturday weren’t ready for the climate circumstances forecast on Saturday, in line with NHFG.
“The forecasted climate circumstances, significantly for the upper summits, was not heeded by many hikers,” the company mentioned in its launch. “A number of discovered themselves unprepared for the harmful circumstances above tree line, and as a substitute of turning again or bailing out to safer elevations, they continued on and finally referred to as 911 anticipating a rescue.”
When NHFG obtained the emergency name about Chen, officers had been already within the midst of carrying an injured hiker out of the Centennial Path in Shelburne, the company mentioned.
“Typically having sufficient gear is just not sufficient,” NHFG suggested. “In climate circumstances skilled this weekend, it’s higher to descend and get out of the wind and chilly as a substitute of pushing on till it’s too late.”