ALMA, N.B. -- A New Brunswick search and rescue team says an injured hiker was rescued and airlifted to a Moncton hospital early Saturday morning.
Greater Fundy Ground Search and Rescue manager Phil Howe says the man was found around 3 a.m. near Little Salmon River -- several hours after the man's hiking partner initially reported the injury.
Volunteers and members of the rescue team worked with the RCMP, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Halifax and Ambulance New Brunswick to find the hiker.
Eventually, Howe says, officials with one of the other agencies found the man and airlifted him to a hospital for treatment of his broken leg.
Howe did not say how old the man was or where he was from.
Howe says the rescue was difficult because the teams had very little information about the man and his whereabouts.
He says the person who reported the man's injuries had to walk two kilometres to get cell reception to make the emergency call.
"I think a lot of people do not take the Fundy Footpath seriously, they don't realize how difficult the trail is," Howe said.
"You're going from 60 metres down to the shore and then back up again through extremely difficult terrain. At that point getting access to rescue people is also very difficult because you're probably 30 kilometres from Sussex."
Howe advises hikers to "do their homework" when they hike that trail, noting that they may not have cell phone reception on the trail and that depending on whether they are, hikers may end up calling 911 and getting a hold of emergency services in Nova Scotia rather than New Brunswick.
