Crime & Safety
Manchester Fire Deploys Boat To Rescue People In Homeless Camp
Firefighters were sent to the Merrimack River for a homeless encampment which had gone underwater due the rising water levels in the area.
MANCHESTER, NH — Manchester firefighters were busy on the Merrimack River Wednesday searching an area frequented by homeless campers to make sure campers were not swept away due to rising river levels.
The firefighters launched a boat behind Fisher Cat Stadium on South Commercial Street after receiving a report that campers might be trapped due to the water.
When firefighters arrived, they found several tents which had taken on large amounts of water and could no longer be accessed by land. The concern of firefighters was that there might still be people in the tents.
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Firefighters used protective water gear and launched a boat to access the tents. Each tent was checked and one occupant was found still in their tent. The stranded person was rescued and brought to shore.
The area of the boat ramp has been an established homeless encampment for several years. As water levels fell during the summer, due to drought conditions, tents were set up closer to the water than normal.
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Significant recent rainfall led to a rise of the water levels and overnight, tents began to be flooded with water.
No one was injured in the incident.
©Jeffrey Hastings www.frameofmindphoto.com/news
