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Rescuers Haul Hurt Woman Off Tumbledown Mountain

May 20, 2009 - TOWNSHIP 6 NORTH OF WELD -- A rescue operation that lasted into the night in the cold, pouring rain brought a 44-year-old woman hiker with an injured ankle down from Tumbledown Mountain on Saturday.

No one at the Maine Warden Service could be reached Sunday to identify the woman, who was taken by NorthStar Ambulance to Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington.

The accident was reported by cell phone to state police about 4:07 p.m., according to a dispatcher. By 4:50 p.m., Christine Tyler and Lisa Drapeau, both members of the Weld Fire & Rescue Department, certified first responders and experienced in backcountry rescues, were on their way up the 2-mile trail, Tyler said. "They were on the trail and were coming down to the pond when (the woman) slipped and injured her ankle," Tyler said. "She was able to hobble and scoot along and could move on her own, and we met her at the pond at about 5:50 (p.m.)."

Tumbledown's Loop Trail, which leads to a pristine lake near the summit, reaches a height of about 3,000 feet. The trailhead is off Byron Road and Route 156 and about eight miles south of Weld village.

The rain started late in the afternoon. The already challenging, rocky trail became covered with wet leaves and protruding wet roots that would make carrying the victim out in the dark treacherous, Tyler said.

The woman and her friend had made it down a short but steep distance, aiding rescuers; and she insisted that she wanted to keep going to meet with the rescue team heading up the trail, Tyler said.

"That really helped. If she had stayed where she was, it would have extended the rescue," she said.

"She was in significant discomfort," Tyler said. "The best thing to do in this situation is help yourself as much as you can, and she was really trying to do that."

When the two groups met, the rescuers strapped the victim into a rescue sled, and teams of volunteers carried her out to the waiting ambulance. Tyler said the woman and her companion had not been on Tumbledown before but were experienced hikers, were well-prepared and had the right clothing and gear.

Weld Fire Chief Wallis Tyler was at the command center set up at the base of the trail. About 40 emergency workers responded, including members of the Weld, Wilton and Carthage fire departments; Franklin County Mountain Rescue; the Maine Warden Service; and NorthStar Ambulance.

"It was a pretty easy rescue; but to get someone down, you need a lot of people," the chief said. "This was a well-trained group, and they worked together and did a fantastic job."

BY BETTY JESPERSEN
Staff Writer, Kennebec Journal
05/18/2009


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