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Cell phone GPS leads searchers to missing Merrimack hikers

By Dean Shalhoup - Senior Staff Writer | Nov 11, 2019

MERRIMACK – Technology appears to have played a signficant role in the rescue Saturday evening of two hikers, who officials say lost their way in the Horse Hill Nature Preserve.

Assistant Fire Chief Matthew Duke said Sunday that the fire and police dispatch center received a 911 call at about 5 p.m., reporting two people had gotten lost while hiking in the preserve, a roughly 560-acre parcel between Amherst and Naticook roads about two miles west of the Everett Turnpike.

Duke said firefighters and police deployed to the area began searching for the hikers based on GPS information transmitted from the cell phone the hikers used to call 911.

He said the department’s all-terrain vehicle was dispatched to the scene and readied for use if necessary.

Duke didn’t say if the hikers were properly dressed for the falling temperatures, which registered 35 degrees at the time of the call.

But the availability of the GPS information led searchers to the hikers within an hour of their 911 call, he said.

The hikers, whose names or ages weren’t released, appeared uninjured, but they were evaluated by ambulance personnel as a precaution before they were returned to their vehicles, Duke said.

He also issued a reminder to hikers and other “outdoor adventurers” that “proper preparation and planning should be done before going out … .”

Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.

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