An ice climber was rescued over the weekend after falling 60 feet into a gully in New Hampshire's White Mountains.
The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said it was notified around 7:30 p.m. Saturday that an ice climber had been injured on Shoestring Gully on Mount Webster.
The climber, 55-year-old Slavek Zaglewski, of Oakland, New Jersey, was climbing with a friend when he fell on a steep section near the top of the climb. He suffered arm and head injuries in the fall.
His friend secured Zaglewski and dressed him in warm clothes. There was no cellphone service at the location, so his friend continued climbing up the ridge until he was able to call 911 for help.
Along with Fish and Game conservation officers, 28 volunteers from the Mountain Rescue Service, Androscoggin Valley Search and Rescue and the Bartlett/Jackson Ambulance Service responded. A small team ascended the gully to reach Zaglewski, while the rest of the group hiked up the ridge above them with equipment needed to raise him out of the gully.
Rescuers were able to stabilize Zaglewski's injuries, treat him for hypothermia and get him into a litter. He was then raised over 400 feet back to level ground and carried down the trail nearly two miles to the trailhead. Several sections of the trail were so steep that rescuers needed to use roped belays to move the littery safely down.
Zaglewski reached the trailhead shortly after 5 a.m. Sunday, and he was taken by ambulance to the Maine Health Memorial Hospital in North Conway for treatment. No update on his condition was immediately available.
