Emergency responders were called to help an elderly hiker on the Appalachian Trail Wednesday night, but the hiker was gone when they arrived.
The Greeneville Emergency & Rescue Squad was dispatched around 8:30 PM to the Appalachian Trail off Hurrican Gap Road to the report of an 82-year-old male who was found laying on the trail by two hikers. The hikers told 9-1-1 that the male was dehydrated and confused.
They were able to get the man to the Spring Mountain shelter, about 1.7 miles from the roadway. They gave the man some food and water while they waited for rescuers. The man, however, decided to move on up the trail and went out of sight of the callers.
Five volunteers with the Greeneville Emergency & Rescue Squad responded, along with members of the Madison County, North Carolina, squad, but were unable to local the man, even after going further up the trail beyond the shelter.
The Greene County Sheriff’s Department and EMS also responded to the scene.
