A North Carolina man who was hiking the length of the Appalachian Trail was rescued from the summit of Spaulding Mountain by dozens of first responders and volunteers Wednesday night.
At around 1 p.m., Richard Sullivan, 65, slipped and fell while atop the 4,009-foot summit of Spaulding Mountain in Mount Abram Township, likely breaking his ankle. Unable to walk, he called the police.
Sullivan was attempting to hike the trail from Maine to Georgia with his son.
About 35 first responders, including game wardens and volunteers, responded to the call, searching for Sullivan in a remote and difficult to access section of the rocky and steep trail. The crews reached Sullivan using a vehicle on a maintenance road atop the 4,237-foot Sugarloaf Mountain, then hiked about 3.5 miles down the mountain to where Sullivan was located.
By 5 p.m., rescuers had reached the hiker and used a special rescue litter, equipped with a mountain bike wheel, to help bring him up the trail to Sugarloaf Mountain to a vehicle. The crews reached the summit by 10:40 p.m.
Sullivan was then taken to Carrabassett Valley Fire Department, before being brought by ambulance to Franklin County Memorial Hospital in Farmington.