Does anyone know about the accident on the powerline in the NEK on Saturday? I heard about it, but haven't seen any reports. I heard it was a Red A/C Turbo. Hoping the person is o.k.

some said there was a blanket over the person and the state police were there when they went by, don't know much besides that but doesn't sound good :div20:

"On the powerline in NEK"

Um, could you clarify a bit. Seems alittle generic.

I wasn't up there this weekend, that is why so vague? Just asking if anyone else had heard anything?

For what its worth...I saw the rescue sled trying to find him, they where acting like it was no big deal and that the guy just hurt his leg.

I heard there was a head on collision and someone broke there leg. But that happened in East Burke, didn't think it happened on 102 the power lines.

add one more "heard" to the list...


...cause i heard from someone who talked to a sledder that rode by the accident, that the person died. said the body was laying motionless by itself.

The person was a part of our group. Ed Callaghan riding a 2 up AC T660 about 30 to 35 miles per hour mis-judged a corner and rolled his sled breaking his leg. He landed with his full weight on his left leg.
We were a group of five riders that was heading to Canaan for lunch when the accident happened at approximately 10:30 am. We all had Communicators and four of us had cell phones. I was number two of our group and Ed was number three. As I passed this corner, I see a previous sled has gone off trail and left quite a mark in the bank along side a ditch and remark to myself " man that must have hurt" when I hear on my Communicator " Stop-Stop-Stop!" and I turn around just around the next bend of the trail.
As I come around the turn I am looking at the Touring sled upside down in the ditch with nothing but track showing and Ed about 25 feet in front of it. He is not moving but his friend is talking to him and is nodding in my direction to signal that he is OK. I still have communication with the group and and let the lead sled know that Ed is hurt but OK otherwise.
We try cell phones to call 911 and check on Ed to make sure he has no other serious injuries. We can't get a signal so two of us stay with Ed to make sure he does not go into shock or try to move that would put him in more distress and one person goes to a high point nearby to improve the odds of a signal while the other of our group goes to the Junction of Rt1 and 102 to get help and a location number off of the sign ( EX401 ).
I put my coat on Ed to keep him warm as does the other guy with me.
The first sled to come by doesn't appear for nearly a half an hour. I am amazed that the traffic is so light on a day so perfect. He tells us that he is going to Maidstone to a camp that has a phone so he will call from there. One of our group has gone back the way we came to see if there is a house or a cell signal whichever comes first. He returns after traveling 8 miles with no success. He and another of our group goes towards East Haven to see if they can reach help or a cell signal.
More people come by. EVEYONE who happens by us offers help. It makes me proud of our sport and I am thankful for their concern.
At 10:55 am one of our party makes contact with 911 within sight of the Radar Base at East Mountain. The Gentleman that went to the camp in Maidstone returns at about 11:15 to report the Rescue crew is on it's way. He is clearly concerned.

Ed is actually doing fine. We don't dare move hime because he is uncomfortable but not in agony and is not going into shock. He is apologetic for screwing up our ride. We assure him he has not screwed anything up and we are concerned about his well being.

At approximately 11:25am the State Police arrive. They put a sled near Ed and one up at the corner to slow oncoming sleds. They check on Ed's well being and attempt to make radio contact. The radios can't send successfully but can recieve broadcasts. After a few minutes we learn that the Rescue people have recieved the call and the coordinates where we are. There is some confusion as to the best route to get our friend out but we will wait to talk to Rescue to see what the options are.
Ed is still OK but laying on the snow pack has made him cold and he does not want to move. He is able to move all the fingers and toes and he can feel his legs and hold a bottle of water with his arms and hands. We are keeping him hydrated and alert. I am not worried for him but I am getting anxious as the State Police now report a second accident on 102 near the Granby road. I hope the rescue folks don't go to that accident and forget about us as our cell phones are losing battery power. As it turns out later, the accident on 102 is actually us the report refers to.
Rescue comes at approximately 1:45 pm. They appear to have been told we are only three miles from East Haven. We are closer to 12 miles from East Haven. We get Ed loaded on to the rescue sled and begin the slow ride to the Radar Base Road. Our friend is loaded into the Ambulance at 2:37 pm and is still doing OK albeit cold.

Three of our group go back to get the sled, the other to get the tow rig and trailer. The sled has sustaind quite a bit of damage and we can't get the track to spin free. After some tinkering, we are able to rotate the track and hook our tow strap to the A-arms and off we go. The damaged sled is loaded into the trailer at 4:00 pm and off to East Burke to be dropped off.

I will offer some observations about the incident.

We should all give thanks to those people that have volunteered their time to Rescue people. They are true saints.
I am proud of the group I rode with- they did the very best in a very bad situation.
I am proud of all the people associated with our sport. Every person that rode by offered help; it was uplifting to see the concern of all the snowmobilers.
The State Police went above and beyond to make sure help was on the way.

I will offer some suggestions:

The State Police should have Satellite Phones issued for duty in remote locations.
VAST should send a current map to every Fire and Rescue Department in the state.
Vast should send a current map to every Ambulance Crew in the state.
The State of Vermont should require cell phone coverage in every square inch of the state. And YES, you can put that tower in my back yard!

I hope my account can set the record straight.

Mike,

You should be proud of the way you handled it, I just hope my group, if it ever happens to us, stay as calm, cool and collected as you and your crew were.

I also second your observations on the sat phones, maps and cell towers.

My best to the injured rider.

-g

Mike,
Was he with us on our ride to Newport/Derby that time? Nice job with the rescue. People don't realize the value of cell service these days, they don't want towers ruing the view. In a state where remote areas and road accidents can be fatal since you can't contact rescue personnel quickly you would think people would embrace them.

No Madcat, it was a different crew this time.

Our average age was around 45. These guys were not speedfreaks, we were just cruising along and....

It was an experience- not necessarily a bad one- but one I hope is never repeated.

Good job ZLSS,

I was at the Mobil in East Burke around noon when I heard about it. A lady told me they actually closed off the trail and to try and avoid that area.

Its tough to stay cool, calm and collective in an emergancy with your heart beating and adreniline taking over. Thank god his injury's weren't any worse. Panic can take over.

Just a note I recommend that at least one rider in every group carry a survival kit. Not only does it have one of those silver blankets but water proof matches and fire starter. One of the most important things someone can learn in survival is a "fire can be a mans best friend", doesn't matter if riding, hunting or just plan old lost in the woods. Don't be afraid to light a camp fire.

I am glad your friend is ok !!!!! I am also proud and happy he was with good people and that many people offered assistance. I am also scared to think almost 3 hours passed before he was "rescued" even though everything possible was done. This should serve to remind us all about being prepared in this sport. Learn first aid and be ready. A survival/first-aid kit is a must, help is a LONG ways away ! As for cell phones, I have heard that an external antenna is availble at Radio Shack that will greatly boost your cell phone range. A friend claims to now be able to make calls from many areas "out of service" before. Also a hand held gps can be a life saver providing an accurate fix on your position. Remember you cannot count on someone else. Please be prepared the life you save could be mine or yours. And ride like your life depends on it cause it does.....

Great news that he is o.k., thanks for setting the record straight. Hats off to your group and the rescue squad for bringing him home safe.

Rick

It sounds like a great group of guys , you should all be proud of your selfs .I can only hope that if i ever need to act like you i can keep a level head and get help as quickly as i can .Your group did a great job my hat is off to you all :div20:

Cell towers are pretty scarce in that neck of the woods. There's one on Burke Mtn and the other closest is in Jefferson, NH. There may be one going up in Lancaster, NH, this summer. Any one know if the VSP auxilaries were based out of Derby or St Jay? If they were out of Derby, they could have changed radio channels to the St Jay frequency which is dispatched off Burke Mtn. Radios do work out there on the correct frequency. The county club should reach out to the NH rescue squads, fire departments and hospitals with maps. Unfortunately, most riders don't know where they are at the time of the incident.

Best wishes, and glad your friend is doing OK.
This is all the reason to take a Basic Medical course through Red Cross or Heart association. I have current EMT certification, and carry basic supplies in case I ever happen upon a accident.

Satalite phones are nice, but do have issues, and cost 10 times what cell phones cost.
And as far as Cell service, it can cost 250K to 500K to put up a cell tower site. And how do you power it, or get the signal back to Land Lines? No chance of a cell tower if there are only 2 or 3 people living within many miles of the area.

Mike: I'm glad everything worked out OK. I know what it is like. FWIW I've always got a strong signal on 102 from Wilke Mountain. This is the section of trail that was heavily damaged in the 96 ice storm and I believe you can see the Radar Station off in the distance. It is also about a couple of miles north of Granby Road and at the top of the second hill that usually shows dirt. BTW skiing is going great but I'm Jonsin' to ride too. Thanks for the great report: DT

The Vermont State Police Auxiliary was based out of Derby but had multi channel radios that could receive transmissions from St. J. but when they transmitted only a word or two would get through. They actually talked to the Sherrif's Department (Essex I think) but our location prevented good transmission.

Our cell reception was OK about 2 or 3 miles from Tollman's Camp. It just meant we had to leave the injured friend to make the call.

I shudder thinking about the "what if's". As it turned out, all is as good as could be expected.

I know from now on, I will be less judgemental when reading about snowmobile accidents.

One additional thought- why can't the DC line be tapped to power a cell tower? How about the wind tower opperation on the Radar Base- can't we get a cell tower there?

Daytripper- hope to see you on the trails. Your reports are the best. Thanks for the tip on Wilke Mtn. :div20:

Mike, hekp me out if you would. The accident was on the 102 trail? If so, was it between EX62 & EX 52 or EX52 & EX401? If not the 102 trail was it on the 1 trail? Several of us are inquisitive. Good job and paitence. Thanks

The accident was less than an 1/8th of a mile from EX 401 on Rt. 102.

Im glad everything turned out ok. GREAT JOB! keeping cool,team work. :div20: :div20: :div20: :div20: :div20: :div20: :div20: :div20:

I used to work with the State Police doing computer stuff. In the last year or two, the communications that they have available to them has increased 10 fold. The State Police do have a few Satelitte phones, but as was mentioned in other posts, they are two expensive to say, place one at every barracks. Also, they don't work the best under tree cover.

Their 2way radio network is getting old, and there is alot of political stuff behind the scenes about the replacement or future build out of the network.

I can only hope that sometime soon someone takes their thumb out of their A$$ and gets this state covered with some form of reliable communication. I also agree that we should shot for cell covereage everywhere.

I am glad to here that the rider was ok, albeit a broken leg. I was also very lucky this year as my riding partner broke both of his wrists earlier this year in Jefforsonville. Luckily we didn't need to be rescued as we were less then a mile from our vehicles. But this thread and my experience this year has tought me to take the possiblity of spending lottsa time in the woods seriously.