Hikers rescued in Vermont amid sub-zero temperatures

Local News

Search and rescue teams rescued two Canadian hikers, a 21-year-old man and 19-year-old woman, Vermont State Police say.

Two Canadian hikers were rescued Saturday after facing “life-threatening” conditions while climbing a Vermont mountain, Vermont State Police said.

A 21-year-old man called 911 on Feb. 7 after he and a 19-year-old woman needed rescue after becoming extremely cold. The pair were close to the summit of Camel’s Hump mountain in Duxbury, State Police said.

Rescue teams began to climb the 4,083-foot mountain at about 6 p.m., searching for the freezing hikers, police said. 

Temperatures were below zero, with wind chills nearing minus 20 degrees. There was also deep snow on the mountain, police said.

Emergency crews audibly directed the hikers to the Alpine Trail, where the two began to make their way below the tree line, police said.

Search and rescue teams began heading to the Monroe Trail, with a team of rescuers climbing the peak with a stretcher. The Monroe Trail intersects with the Alpine Trail, Vermont State Police said.

At 11:20 p.m. rescue teams reached the hikers, who were suffering from hypothermia, according to State Police.

The man was able to walk down the trail after being warmed. The woman was loaded onto the stretcher, police said.

Crews reached the bottom of the trail close to 4 a.m., where an ambulance transported the woman to a local hospital for treatment. The hikers, both from Ontario, are expected to make a full recovery, police said. 

Lt. Thomas Howard, commander of the Vermont State Police’s search and rescue team, said the combined efforts and multiple rescue crews in “incredibly challenging conditions” saved the hikers’ lives. 

The state of Vermont does not hold those who call for backcountry help financially liable for their rescue, State Police said.