By BOB MARTIN
Eagle Times Staff
WALPOLE, N.H. — A geothermal drone, two helicopters and plenty of manpower were utilized to locate and remove an 18-year-old injured hiker who fell about 30 feet off a ledge at Mount Kilburn on Tuesday night.
According to N.H. Fish and Game, on April 15 at 6:20 p.m., the father of Thierry Salter-Dimma, 18, of Bellows Falls, Vermont, called to report that his son had called him to tell him he had fallen and suffered a leg injury. About 10 minutes later, Salter-Dimma called 911 which provided GPS coordinates, but his phone died almost immediately after.
Conservation officers were not able to speak with him, but coordinates were found to be near the Table Rock Overlook.
This triggered a multiple agency response to be initiated, which included the following agencies: Walpole Fire Department, North Walpole Fire Department, Walpole Police Department, Keene Fire Department High Angle Rescue Team, Golden Cross Ambulance, Bellows Falls Fire Department, Upper Valley Wilderness Response Team (UVWRT), Dartmouth Hitchcock Advanced Response Team (DHART), Rockingham Recon Aerial Services, Southwestern New Hampshire District Fire Mutual Aid, and NH Army National Guard (NHARNG).
Pilot and owner of Rockingham Recon Aerial Services Michael White, along with Andrew Malshuk who assisted on the ground crew, spoke with The Eagle Times on Wednesday morning about the incident. According to Malshuk, Salter-Dimma was rode his bike to the trailhead before summiting on foot, the terrain full of loose gravel.
“The terrain up there is super wet and slippery, so he fell down into a ravine so that is why it was so difficult to get him out,” Malshuk.
White added that there have been several other incidents of people falling in this location.
“I can’t say for certain on what happened, not being up there with him, but he did fall off a rock face and was not able to move and get out,” White said.
White explained that he is a first responder in the area and knows the chiefs and personnel involved well. He was called to help with the effort because the DHART needed to leave and switch crews out.
“They wanted to get some assistance for search from the air,” White explained.
White has a thermal imaging drone that he was able to deploy, and he was assisted by Malshuk and Co-Pilot Joe Scruggs. They were able to set up at the train yard in North Walpole, and with the help of DHART having coordinates previously, they could send up their drone to function as a “beacon” for the ground crew to get to the patient.
“They were able to see the flood light that we carry on that drone,” White said. “I could see them and be able to tell them about the terrain. At one point they were walking through a stream and said, ‘This is wet, can you help me?’ So, we told him to shift 40 yards to the left and assist him with that.”
He added, “I have different things I can put on top of the drone. We have a loudspeaker, a spotlight, beacon lights. Depending on the mission I can change it, so when it got really dark, I deployed the spotlight.”
“There was enough heat on the ground to be able to use the thermal imaging that is on board my drone to find him with the Fish and Game officer,” White said. “We were able to get over the top and keep an eye on them.”
According to Fish and Game, members of UVWRT recreationally rock climb in the area and were “extremely familiar” with the terrain and how to access Salter-Dimma. This allowed them and a conservation officer to hike a trail that they had previously created from the bottom to the location, arriving just before the NHARNG helicopter.
According to N.H. Fish and Game Conservation Officer Lt. William Boudreau, rescuers on the ground had a tough time getting to Salter-Dimma from above due to the steepness of the area and loose rock. At about 8:10 p.m., Conservation Officer Zac Abrahamsson scaled down steep cliffs to get to Salter-Dimma, finding that he had fallen off a ledge and was badly injured.
“We were able to find him fairly easily because the coordinates were really good from the 911 call, but the problem was that it was so difficult to get to him and that his injuries were severe,” Boudreau explained.
Abrahamsson provided aid, warm clothing, and assessed his injuries, Boudreau said.
Due to the dangerous terrain and severity of the injuries, a call was made to the NHARNG to request assistance with a helicopter hoist rescue. Boudreau said NHARNG happened to be conducting training operations and was able to respond quickly.
White explained that when he first arrived at the scene it was close to dusk, but the patient was flashing a light, so he had an idea of where to work with.
Fish and Game reported that a medic was lowered from the helicopter, but the tree canopy was too thick to safely raise the patient.
“Rescuers on the ground then packaged Salter-Dimma into a litter and carried him approximately 150 feet to an opening in the tree canopy,” the report stated.
The NHARNG raised Salter-Dimma into the helicopter to be taken to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center at about 10:46 p.m.
Boudreau could not legally disclose the nature of the leg injury, but said they only utilize the National Guard when it is an emergency. He did say that the patient was talking and “seemed to be doing OK for the conditions.”
“I’d like to thank all the agencies and volunteers who showed up, and everyone who worked well together to get the mission accomplished,” Boudreau said. “Whenever you go hiking you should be prepared for the unexpected.”
Hikers are urged to be prepared and to use caution while hiking. Fish and Game lists 10 essentials to bring, even on a day hike, including: a map, compass, warm clothing, extra food and water, headlamp, fire starter, first aid kit, whistle, rain/wind jackets and pants, and a knife. For more information log onto /hikesafe.com.
This article was updated on Friday, April 18 at 6:30 p.m.
