Concord Firefighters Rescue Homeless Campers Trapped By Rising River

CONCORD, NH — Concord fire and rescue teams assisted six homeless campers in Healy Park after rising water levels from the Merrimack River flooded the park and surrounded their tents with water on Thursday.

Around 11:15 a.m., Capital Area Fire Dispatch began receiving calls about homeless campers in the park who were trapped by water. Fire and rescue teams went to Basin Street to see if they could access the area to get to the campers but could not.

“Yeah, it looks like it is pretty flooded in here,” a fire commander said. “I don’t believe you’re going to be able to (access the area).”

The commander said they wanted to locate the campers first before launching boats. One firefighter suggested wading in or possibly inflating a raft to get the campers out. Later, firefighters launched boats to get to the campers. Firefighters also saw several tents in the park and did not know exactly where the trapped campers were. The commander attempted to call the person who called for assistance, but the call went straight to voicemail, they said.

Later, a firefighter said the campers were “quite a ways in,” about a half mile or more into the park. The campers, they said, about five of them, were on dry land but were surrounded by water.

“You’re not going to able to walk in,” one firefighter said.

The commander suggested taking one of the boats upriver and circling back between the flooded parkland and Interstate 93 north. The commander said the campers would yell to get the firefighters’ attention. The caller also said there might be more trapped campers, but they did not know.

Several firefighters began searching by boat for the campers. After several hours, six campers were located and rescued, with firefighters transporting them to the Basin Street area.

Battalion Commander Tony Manning of the Concord Fire Department said the campers moved from one location to another, making the rescue attempt more difficult. He said the teams wrapped up the rescue operation around 4 p.m. after nearly five hours.

Two people were to Concord Hospital due to hypothermia or other issues, while four were able to leave the area on their own, he said.

Several capital region firefighters assisted Concord with mutual aid calls during the rescue. Concord police also assisted at the scene.

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