Also on today’s menu:
Evan Foster Is Finalist For National Merit Scholarship
US Suggests Temporary Ceasefire In Gaza
The Cog Railway provided a special train mounted with a snowblower to bring rescue crews to the crossing of the Westside Trail on Mount Washington after 22-year-old Cole Matthes of Portsmouth placed a 911 on February 17 to say he fell and was injured while hiking in the Ammonusuc Ravine on the mountain’s western slope.
Poor cellular reception prevented Matthes from providing much information beyond GPS coordinates of his location which showed he was well off the trail in a drainage ravine west of Westside Trail and north of Crawford Path, at approximately 4,500 feet in elevation. Conservation officers on the Advanced Search and Rescue Team, Androscoggin Valley Search and Rescue Team, and Mountain Rescue Service responded. Use of the Cog Railway saved the rescue teams from many miles of strenuous hiking. A team with the first train cleared the path to get rescuers on their way to the GPS location, and a second train brought another rescue crew to the area.
Matthes, meanwhile, placed two other calls, with the first failing due to poor reception. On his third call, Matthes managed to say that he had made his way to the Lakes in the Clouds Hut where he was taking refuge in the emergency shelter outside. The first team made its way to him under conditions of sustained winds exceeding 90 mph and a wind-chill of -52 F, even though the ambient temperature was -9 F. They knew those conditions would require proper gear and experience to survive, and by the time they reached Matthes at 6:17 p.m., they found him suffering from hypothermia. His layers of clothes were frozen, along with frozen hiking shoes. It took more than three to slowly warm Matthes and, by then, the second rescue crew arrived to take over.
The crew assisted Matthes to the Ammonusuc Ravine Trail and arrived at the Cog Railway base station about 10:50 p.m. A crew from Twin Mountain Ambulance treated Matthes for hypothermia and frostbite, but he refused further treatment.
Discussion: NH Fish and Game Sergeant Glenn Lucas said Matthes had made a number of poor decisions, first by not having the proper gear, equipment, and weather planning for hiking Mount Washington, then, even when other hikers told him to turn around due to poor weather conditions, he kept going. The mountain is unforgiving, and Matthes was fortunate to make it out, but his poor decisions put many other lives in jeopardy.
Evan Foster Is Finalist For National Merit Scholarship
Evan Foster, a senior at Newfound Regional High School, has been named a National Merit Scholarship finalist.
The National Merit Scholarship Program began in 1955 as an academic competition among high school students for recognition and college scholarships. Students enter the program by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which serves as an initial screening of more than 1.3 million entrants each year. The top 50,000 high-scorers then are further pared down to 34,000 “commended students”, then 16,000 semi-finalists.
From the initial 1.3 million students across the country who entered the competition, only 15,000 become finalists, based on their abilities, skills, and accomplishments.
Discussion: Evan is among the 12 percent of students across the country who have qualified as a finalist for the National Merit Scholarship. Only 7,140 will make the final cut to be named National Merit Scholars.
US Suggests Temporary Ceasefire In Gaza
With Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz warning that the country plans to launch an offensive in the city of Rafah at the start of Ramadan — the Islamic holy month of fasting — unless Hamas frees all its hostages by March 10, the United States is proposing a resolution for the United Nations Security Council that calls for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza. It is the first time the US has used the word “ceasefire” in the context of Israel’s war against Hamas.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected any call for a ceasefire, saying he will not stop the offensive until Hamas is destroyed and hostages are released.
In proposing its draft resolution, the US indicated that it plans to veto a competing draft resolution from Algeria that would call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire. More than a million displaced Palestinians — about half of Gaza’s population — have taken refuge in Rafah.
Café Chatter
On Lost Ethnic Musical Traditions: Your exploration of old records brings back a happy memory when my cousin and I (then in our teens) had a wonderful time digging through the old 78 rpm records at our grandparents’ house. The title of one song that I remember to this day was “Keep Your Skillet Good and Greasy.” Gracious — how southern was that!
— Susan Duncan
Thank you for sharing the story of Evan! All the best to him as he continues.