Two West Point cadets who were stranded on an upstate mountain cliff for over eight hours were rescued in dramatic fashion by the NYPD early this morning. The two freshman cadets called 911 around 6 p.m. yesterday after they realized they were stuck on a cliff on Storm King Mountain; they were trapped on an 18-inch-wide rocky ledge, clinging to a tree as winds increased up to 50 mph and temperatures dropped below freezing. Both had hypothermia by the time authorities arrived in the area.
Local police triangulated their cellphone signal to find them, but had to call in the NYPD for help getting to them. An air-and-sea rescue helicopter from the NYPD's Air Operations Heliport arrived, but they had serious difficulties reaching the cadets—the high winds made it difficult to keep the helicopter steady, and in the darkness, the pilot had to get close enough to reach the cadets, but not so close that the rotor blades would clip the cliff. Eventually, Det. Christopher Condon, a tactical medic, was lowered from the helicopter onto the narrow ledge, and he was able to secure one cadet.
According to the NYPD, the high winds made it impossible to grab the second cadet immediately: "The aircrew, battling the turbulence and extreme winds as well as the high-power demand, were unable to hoist the second victim." Instead, Condon stayed behind on the cliff with the second cadet while the helicopter regrouped at a nearby landing area. They came back and rescued them less than an hour later. Both cadets, who are recovering now, were surprised that the NYPD showed up to help: "The NYPD is unique in that we are standing by 24-7 as a quick reaction force to answer 911 calls. We actually become a regional asset, especially after 11 p.m.," said NYPD Aviation Unit Commanding Officer James Coan. Below, you can see footage of the rescue:
