Plymouth Teens Rescued from Mount Washington Summit After Leg Injury in New Hampshire

Two Plymouth, Massachusetts teenagers were rescued from the summit of Mount Washington in New Hampshire on Saturday evening after one of them suffered a leg injury during their hike.

The teens, identified as 17-year-old Khang Nguyen and 18-year-old Vaughn Webb, had set out on the hike well prepared with trekking poles, layers, microspikes for their boots, and other gear. However, halfway up the trail, Nguyen began experiencing severe pain in his right leg, making it difficult to lift.

Despite the injury, the pair continued to the summit but were forced to seek shelter next to a building as wind gusts intensified and temperatures dropped to 38 degrees Fahrenheit. They also reported running out of food and water before making the 911 call around 7:30 p.m.

New Hampshire Fish and Game Department conservation officers responded to the alert and began searching for the teenagers in four-wheel-drive pickup trucks, aiming to reach the summit before incoming snow. A State Park employee joined the search and located the teens by 8 p.m., finding them sheltered near a building on the summit.

The park employee brought the teenagers inside the state park building and administered first aid to Nguyen for his leg injury. Approximately an hour later, a conservation officer transported both teens down the mountain in a pickup truck. They were safely off the summit by 10 p.m.

Nguyen expressed gratitude for the swift response, stating that the worker who assisted them “came in record time” and that their help “saved our lives potentially.” Both teenagers have since returned to Massachusetts.

The rescue was one of five incidents involving Massachusetts residents in New Hampshire’s White Mountains within a 48-hour period. Earlier that Friday night, three women from Haverhill required assistance after becoming lost along the Falling Waters Trail in Franconia Notch State Park.

All individuals involved in the weekend’s rescue operations were reported safe by the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department.