Enduring frigid, windy conditions, two hikers helped rescue an injured hiker on New Hampshire’s Mount Willey Thursday afternoon.
According to New Hampshire Fish and Game officials, Gary Coyne, 62, of Wentworth, New Hampshire, slipped and injured his leg while descending Mount Willey around 1 p.m. He was alone on the trail and no cell phone service was available in the area.
At roughly 2 p.m., hikers Jessica Sargent, 28, of Tuftonboro, New Hampshire and Monica Nicholson, 28, of Effingham, New Hampshire, came across Coyne roughly 2 1/2 miles from the trailhead. They decided to have Sargent go for help while Nicholson remained with Coyne to help him down the trail.
Fish and Game officials say weather conditions at the time were deteriorating rapidly. The temperature was dropping and strong winds were blowing snow around.
After Sargent reached her vehicle, she drove to an area where she could call for help. Fish and Game conservation officers responded to the area and began hiking up the trail when they saw the headlamps of Nicholson and Coyne.
The hikers reached the trailhead shortly before 7 p.m., and Coyne was taken by a local ambulance to Littleton Regional Hospital for treatment.