Group Rescued from Billy Goat Trail During Heat Emergency

Via MCFRS Chief Spokesperson Pete Piringer.

15 juveniles and a few adults were rescued from the Billy Goat Trail in Potomac after feeling hot and suffering heat exhaustion, a Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service (MCFRS) spokesperson said.

MCFRS was dispatched to Trail A around 4 p.m. Thursday for  the group, Chief Spokesperson Pete Piringer wrote on Twitter. Emergency services evaluated and relocated the patients. One youth went to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Piringer said.

In a separate incident around 8:45 p.m., Piringer said rescuers located one adult hiker who was dazed and confused on Trail C. He gave rescuers a GPS location and was found quickly, also thanks to a flare and flashlight. The man suffered dehydration and heat exhaustion and went to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Piringer said. He noted it was 91 degrees Fahrenheit at 9 p.m.

Montgomery County has been under a Heat Emergency Alert since noon Wednesday . It will end 8 p.m. Friday. Emergency Management sends out the alert under “dangerously hot conditions” when temperature/heat index is forecast to be at least 105 degrees.

“It’s too hot for the Billy Goat Trail A,” Piringer warned Thursday. He said it was 100 degrees at 4 p.m. He issued the same warning Friday and said it was 100 degrees as of 1 p.m.

See signs of heat-related illness and guidance for excessive heat days here. Residents are urged to stay indoors as much as possible, avoid strenuous activities that can overexpose residents to the sun and take breaks often in a cool, shaded area if they must be outside.

Update – @COcanalNPS Billy Goat Trail A, initial dispatch about 4 PM, for a group of kids on BGT needing assistance, group (multiple) juvenile patients & few adults located by @mcfrs rescuers/EMS & evaluated, all patients relocated to EMS staging area, 1 juvenile transported NLT https://t.co/KlioSIVe89 pic.twitter.com/NX6gqcpfRs

— Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) August 12, 2021

About Maryam Shahzad

Maryam is a reporter with Montgomery Community Media. She graduated from the University of Maryland in 2019 with a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism. Previously, she was an intern with MCM. She can be reached at mshahzad@mymcmedia.org or on Twitter @maryam_mcm.

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