Hiker suffers hypothermia during trek on New England's highest peak amid East Coast heat wave
Caroline Wilson, 55, of Austin, Texas, was found hypothermic and unresponsive on the Gulfside Trail, approximately one mile north of the Cog Railway tracks, while hiking Mount Washington, New England's highest peak, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said in a release.
The department said Wilson became incapacitated during the hike, prompting her husband to call 911 at 5 p.m. He told authorities that she could no longer move or communicate.
Conservation Officer Rachael Stocker told Fox News Digital that she assisted in the rescue mission, and said Wilson was wearing cotton base layers during her trek. She said cotton is not the best to wear during hiking because the material is absorbant to sweat.
She noted that on Friday, it was raining intermittently, causing the 55-year-old to succumb to the elements and suffer from severe hypothermia.
"The White Mountains can be pretty unforgiving," she said. "Weather changes here in a flash." Photos from the scene of the rescue captured the misty environment and steep rocky terrain.
New Hampshire Fish and Game Department conservation officers, along with volunteers from Androscoggin Valley Search and Rescue, Pemigewassett Valley Search and Rescue, Mountain Rescue Service and personnel from the Mount Washington Cog Railway, mounted a complex response in severe alpine conditions to rescue Wilson.
Despite a heat wave sweeping cities from Boston to Baltimore, conditions above 5,000 feet in the White Mountains were anything but warm. On the summit of Mount Washington on Friday, temperatures hovered around 20 degrees Fahrenheit, with wind speeds reaching 120 mph and dense cloud cover reducing visibility.
Several hikers in the region were reported suffering from hypothermia throughout the day, the department noted.
The Cog Railway played a crucial role in the rescue operation, transporting rescue teams up the mountain and sparing them a grueling three-mile ascent via the Jewell Trail, the department said.
The first rescue team reached the ridgeline at 7 p.m., with a second team arriving an hour later. Rescuers battled high winds and cold as they built a temporary shelter to stabilize Wilson before carrying her back to the waiting train.
Upon arrival at the base station, Wilson was handed over to a Twin Mountain ambulance crew and transported to Littleton Regional Healthcare for further treatment, the department said.
Officials credited the successful outcome to the tireless efforts of rescue volunteers and the Cog Railway's continued support in emergency efforts.
"The weather was not great and the conditions were potentially life-threatening," a department said, "but each group responded to the call for assistance and endured less-than-hospitable weather conditions to save the life of this hiker."
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