State Department of Environmental Conservation forest rangers recovered the bodies of several people who drowned in Adirondack waterways, and also assisted numerous people over the last week who became lost or injured in the backcountry.

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Town of Wells

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On July 3, DEC staff at Sacandaga Campground in the southern Adirondacks called DEC dispatch in Ray Brook to report an unconscious man in the Sacandaga River.

The Hamilton County sheriff’s office along with four rangers were dispatched to look for the man. Rangers used an airboat and began searching the river from the boat launch in Northville.

The man was found dead in Class III water, accessible only by boat. Rangers used the airboat to recover his body.

The sheriffs office later told media that the man was Corlous Fisher, 64, of Johnstown, and that he was tubing on the river with his family.

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Town of Wilmington

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On Monday, July 3, Essex County 911 requested ranger assistance at the Flume waterfall on the West Branch of the AuSable River in Wilmington for a missing individual.

Rangers, state police and local rescue and fire crews looked overnight for 31-year-old Matthew Miller of Ithaca Ithaca and located the deceased man in the early afternoon of July 4.

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Town of Little Falls

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Forest rangers were called to help search for three men who had last been seen entering the Mohawk River on July 3. A witness stated that the three entered a closed boat launch, despite signs stating that the river was closed. None of the three had PFDs on or with them when they launched a new paddleboat.

State police aviation assisted the rangers in searching for the trio, and a drone and shore lookouts were also utilized.

Rangers found Terry Moshier, 42, dead on July 4, and the other two — Kevin Moak, 23, and Ryan Moak, 18 — were found dead on July 5.

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Town of Keene

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Early on July 4, a woman reported that her boyfriend was overdue from a hike. The man failed to leave a detailed itinerary, so a broad search of area trailheads was conducted. Family members determined that the man’s car was parked at the Adirondack Mountain Reserve parking area. A search of the trail registers indicated the man intended to climb Dial and Nippletop mountains.

Rangers searched drainages and herd paths throughout the night, and the next day state police communications equipment and a helicopter were brought into the search effort. Rangers were also inserted via helicopter into remote areas.

Rangers on assignment near Elk Lake located the man on July 5 and escorted him to the Elk Lake trailhead.

Town of Fort Ann

Rangers used cellphone coordinates and voice contact to locate two girls who had become separated from their hiking party on Buck Mountain on July 4.

Three of the group had left the summit and reported the two girls missing when they failed to arrive at the trailhead. The girls were in good health and were escorted to the trailhead.

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Town of Bolton

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On Thursday, July 6, rangers were called to help a man who had suffered a knee injury while hiking Thomas Mountain near Lake George.

Rangers evaluated and stabilized the man’s injury, then helped him back to the trailhead where a waiting ambulance took him to a local hospital for treatment.

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Town of Hague

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Late in the evening on July 6, DEC dispatch in Ray Brook received a direct call reporting that three people were overdue from a canoe trip on Jabe Pond. The three people, all males, were aged 50, 27 and 10, and had left Hudson Falls earlier that morning.

Rangers located the group’s vehicle and canoe, but initial search results were negative. Three rangers continued the search through the night and located the trio just after 5 a.m. on July 7. The three were in good health and were escorted out of the woods.

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Town of Greig

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At 11:01 a.m. on July 7, rangers received a direct call for assistance for a woman with neck and back injuries. The woman was riding a horse on the Otter Creek Horse Trails when the horse was spooked by a deer and bucked the rider.

Rangers stabilized and treated the woman’s back and neck injuries, and then carried her to a private residence where a helicopter picked her up for transport to a local hospital.

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Town of Harrietstown

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Rangers, along with state police and local rescue and fire crews, searched Saturday and Sunday, July 8 and 9, for a missing kayaker on Kiwassa Lake near the village of Saranac Lake. After ground searches and interviews with campers in the area, rangers determined the man was in the water.

The state police dive team was brought in and located the deceased man’s submerged body on Sunday, July 9. After an autopsy, officials said he died of drowning due to alcohol intoxication, according to state police.

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Town of Indian Lake

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The Blue Mountain summit steward called rangers for help when a 16-year-old girl suffered an ankle injury at the summit of the mountain.

Ranger Jason Scott responded and was able to use the tower maintenance access road to drive his patrol vehicle to the top of the mountain. Scott attended to the girl’s injury and transported her and three family members back to the trailhead. The Blue Mountain Lake Ambulance Squad provided further medical care and transport to a local hospital.