20 hikers rescued after getting stuck in snowy conditions on Mount Washington in New Hampshire
By Victoria D
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NEW HAMPSHIRE (WBZ) — Twenty hikers were rescued from Mount Washington in New Hampshire Saturday after they got stuck in the windy, snowy conditions on the mountain.
The hikers were rescued by the Mount Washington Cog Railway, the train that climbs the mountain year-round. Andrew Vilaine, the railway’s trainmaster, said the hikers made it to the summit but were “poorly prepared” due to lack of experience and poor gear choices.
“Most were unaware of the full set of winter conditions and the lack of facilities at the summit,” said Vilaine in an email to WBZ-TV.
Vilaine said he was operating the train on Saturday and came across the hikers, who were “pleading for a ride down.” The hikers were put in the train and were carried down the mountain.
As of Sunday morning, it was 20 degrees on the mountain, with a wind chill of 2 degrees and 3 to 4 inches of snow on the ground and wind blowing 35 miles per hour. Vilaine said the Auto Road, where drivers can climb the mountain themselves, remains open but not to the summit because of the weather.
Vilaine said the hikers’ conditions varied from exhaustion to hypothermia and he doesn’t believe any of them required a trip to the hospital.
“Our intervention and putting them in a warm train warded off hypothermia,” said Vilaine in an email.
Mount Washington recently experienced its first measurable snow of the season last week.
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