Heroes Rescue Dog That Fell Into Large Well in the Catskill Mountains

A husky is back with its owners after falling into a large well in the Catskill Mountains.

The poor pooch fell into a cistern on Sunday, October 17 at the Kaaterskill Hotel. Several Forest Rangers from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) came to the rescue. One repelled down to the bottom of the well and discovered the dog was uninjured. A harness was then used to pull the 65-pound husky to safety.

Forest Rangers usually rescue people from the mountains in New York State. Last year they conducted nearly 500 search and rescue missions. 6 people had to be rescued in the last week alone.

Wilderness Rescues

• An injured hiker along the Moose River
• A Brooklyn runner lost on an old forest road on the side of Prospect Mountain
• A lost hunter in the East Fish Creek Easement
• A hiker who dislocated his shoulder on the Opalescent Trail in the High Peaks Wilderness Area
• A hiker who injured his left arm after falling in the woods.
• A lost hunter in the Independence River Wild Forest

DEC Forest Rangers also helped put out nearly 200 wildfires in 2020 that burned over 1,100 acres and worked on cases that resulted in 3,131 tickets or arrests.

"During New York's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, more people are enjoying the outdoors than ever before and our Forest Rangers are on the front lines to help people get outside responsibly and get home safely," said DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos. "Rangers' knowledge of first aid, land navigation, and technical rescue techniques are critical to the success of their missions, which for more than a century have taken them from remote wilderness areas with rugged mountain peaks, to white water rivers, and throughout our vast forests statewide."