One Person Injured In Snow Collapse At Tuckerman Ravine, New Hampshire
It was at approximately 1:30 P.M. this past Saturday, July 18th, that a 911 call was received reporting that a person was caught in an avalanche in Tuckerman's Ravine Trail, according to a NH Fish & Game Department news release. The call that was received was transferred to a Conservation Officer, who gathered as much information as possible. Part of that information included the possibility of more than one person being caught in the avalanche.
However, as more information was collected by the Conservation Officer, it was realized that the incident was not an avalanche, but an actual collapse of a snow formation known as The Tuckerman Snow Arch.
NH Fish & Game Conservation Officers, along with members of the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) and Androscoggin Valley Search and Rescue were called in to respond for the rescue. During this response time, it was confirmed that only one person had been caught in the snow collapse.
The victim, 28-year-old Alphonse Riang of Quincy, Massachusettes, had gone off-trail and under the snow arch to take a video of the area. The arch collapsed while Riang was underneath. Witnesses described the scene as having "a basketball court size amount of snow" and that "it sounded like a sonic boom when the snow arch collapsed and landed."
Though it is unknown how long Riang was under the snow and ice, other passing hikers who saw the incident were able to stop and help Riang out of the snow and to safety. AMC personnel were the first to arrive on the scene after Riang had been moved. As more rescue personnel arrived it was determined that Riang had received serious, but non-life-threatening injuries. Though seriously injured, it was decided that a slow, assisted walk down the trail was just as safe as a carryout. Riang was assisted down to Hermit Lake shelter where he was then loaded onto an ATV.
Rescuers brought Riang down the Sherburne Ski Trail and arrived at the Pinkham Notch Visitor's Center parking lot at approximately 6:45 P.M. Riang was then loaded into a Gorham Ambulance and taken to Androscoggin Valley Hospital to be treated for his injuries.
Photo: The aftermath of the snow arch collapse. - Credit: NH Fish & Game Dept.
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