SHANDAKEN - What began as a routine wilderness rescue on a winter evening in the Catskills ended in loss and mourning, after a veteran volunteer firefighter suffered a fatal medical emergency while helping an injured hiker off Panther Mountain, according to a press released issued by the New York State Department of Environmental Protection.
Ulster County 911 received an SOS call shortly before 6 p.m. on Dec. 13 from a 20-year-old hiker from New Jersey who had sustained an unstable lower leg injury on the Fox Hollow Trail. Forest rangers with the state Department of Environmental Conservation responded, along with members of the Phoenicia Volunteer Fire Department, who reached the hiker first and began carrying him down the steep trail.
Moments before forest rangers arrived, the rescue effort took a sudden turn. Michael Ryan, the fire commissioner for the Phoenicia Fire District and a longtime volunteer firefighter, collapsed and went into cardiac arrest. Forest Rangers immediately began CPR as the rescue scene shifted from one emergency to two.
The terrain complicated every step. Working together, forest rangers, volunteer firefighters and Shandaken police officers carefully moved Ryan down the trail to awaiting paramedics. An automated external defibrillator was deployed, and lifesaving efforts continued as rescuers carried him to an ambulance. Ryan was transported to Margaretville Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
While the rescue team fought to save their colleague, Ranger Horn remained with the injured hiker, splinting the ankle and treating him for exposure. Additional forest rangers and volunteer firefighters from Phoenicia and Olive later assisted in belaying the hiker down a steep section of trail. He was transferred to an ambulance and taken to the hospital. All rescue resources cleared the mountain by 8:30 p.m., though personnel remained at the hospital into the early morning hours.
In a statement released after the incident, Amanda Lefton, DEC commissioner, said the state was grieving the loss of a public servant who died in the line of duty.
“I join our DEC Forest Rangers and the entire State of New York in mourning the loss of Phoenicia Fire District Commissioner and Firefighter Michael Ryan,” Lefton said. “A proven hero, Firefighter Ryan responded to a call to assist DEC Forest Rangers in a hiker rescue and suffered a significant medical emergency during the response.”
She emphasized the essential role played by volunteer fire departments in backcountry rescues and public safety across New York. “Firefighter Ryan exemplified leadership in his role in protecting his community and his partnership with DEC,” Lefton said, offering condolences to his family, colleagues and community.
