A man had to be rescued after injuring his hip while hiking at New York’s Kaaterskill Falls on Monday, January 14.

According to New York Department of Environmental Conservation officials, the 66-year-old man from Hudson, New York, slipped on the ice while hiking. Officials said the hiker was wearing sneakers at the time with no traction control devices.

The man reportedly tried to crawl out the half-mile trail on his own when another hiker saw him and called 911.

The Palenville, Tannersville, Centerville, Cedar Grove fire departments, Ulster County Fire, Hunter Police Department, Hunter Ambulance, Greene County paramedics, the Twin Clove Rescue Team, five forest rangers, and two DEC Environmental Conservation police officers responded to the scene.

The patient was hypo-wrapped and packaged in a rescue basket prior to the rangers’ arrival. Rescuers carried the man to an ambulance staged at the trailhead on Route 23A. He was then taken to Kingston hospital.

The following are other highlights performed by New York DEC forest rangers between January 14 and 21, 2019.

Town of Hunter
Greene County
Flat Ice Rescue Training: On Jan. 14, Region 4 Forest Rangers conducted a flat ice rescue training event at Green Lake in Greene County. The training involved executing ice rescue techniques to save the life of a struggling person that had fallen into icy cold waters. Techniques practiced included: throwing a rope bag to a victim; securing the victim with a reach pole; and rescuing an unresponsive victim. The skills required to conduct difficult rescues using specialized equipment and suits when someone has fallen through ice need to be practiced annually to remain proficient.

Town of Hunter
Greene County
Search: On Jan. 18, Greene County 911 requested Forest Ranger assistance in locating two lost hikers on the Mink Hollow Trail in Indian Head Wild Forest. The two hikers from Long Island went on a day hike up Sugarloaf Mountain from the Roaring Kill Trailhead. The hike took longer than expected due to icy conditions on the trail. As the pair hiked back to the trailhead on the Mink Hollow trail, they ran out of daylight and their flashlight broke, leaving the hikers stranded in the darkness. They called Greene 911 and Forest Rangers Dawson and Nally responded, locating them about 1.8 miles up the Mink Hollow trail. The hikers were walked out to their vehicle by midnight.

Winter Storm Harper
Emergency Response: In response to Winter Storm Harper this past weekend, Forest Rangers deployed a total of 26 snowmobiles to eight staging areas across the state and along major roadways, including the NYS Thruway, the Northway, I-88, I-81 and Rt. 17. Forest Rangers also had staff at the State Office of Emergency Management (OEM) operations center in Albany assisting with the coordination of resources for the search and rescue emergency service function. Staff also responded to several of the State Regional Operations Centers to help coordinate with local governments. In addition to the Forest Rangers, Environmental Conservation Police Officers, Emergency Management staff, and Executive staff, including Commissioner Seggos, were deployed to assist with storm operations.