Stranded Hiker Dead After N.H. Mountain Storm; Others Safe

RANDOLPH, N.H. — A climber stranded overnight in winter-like weather suffered severe exposure and died Monday after being carried off a 5,300-foot mountain by workers who rescued his companion, officials said.

Weather observers said that Sunday’s snow, freezing rain and severe winds were among the worst weather conditions this summer for the White Mountains’ Presidential Range.

Rescuers carried the hypothermia victim, an unidentified man in his 50s, on a makeshift stretcher down 5,362-foot-high Mt. Madison, state conservation officer Keith Kidder said. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Hikers Mike Debonis, 37, of Waterbury, Conn., and Wayne McNeil, 33, of Framingham, Mass., walked out on their own Monday after spending a night stranded on nearby Mt. Washington, where wind gusts of up to 121 m.p.h. were recorded Sunday night. The 6,288-foot peak is the highest in the Northeast.