Massachusetts family rescued after GPS took minivan onto snowmobile trail in New Hampshire
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Authorities rescued a Massachusetts family after their minivan got stuck on a snowmobile trail in New Hampshire.
The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said authorities from several agencies were called to Crawford’s Purchase to help a family whose vehicle got stuck on the Jefferson Notch Road snowmobile trail.
Personnel from New Hampshire Fish and Game, Twin Mountain Fire and Rescue and New Hampshire State Police were called just before midnight Saturday to help two adults and five children who were stranded in a minivan after their GPS took them onto a seasonal road that is only open to snowmobile traffic during the winter.
No one was injured but the family said the minivan was running out of fuel. The minivan had gone off the trail and was stuck in a ditch, authorities said.
The Twin Mountain Fire Department used an ATV to reach the family and began shuttling people from the scene back to Base Station Road. A conservation officer also used a snowmobile to help transport the family.
Authorities pulled the minivan from the ditch. The family and vehicle were freed by 2 a.m. Sunday.
The driver of the minivan, 45-year-old Dattu Prajapati of Burlington, Massachusetts, told investigators that he had been following his GPS after leaving the Bretton Woods Ski Area.
“The GPS had indicated that he should take Jefferson Notch Road back to Gorham,” authorities said. “After entering the road, Prajapati could not find a place to turn around. Driving in several miles, he was eventually able to turn around but got stuck after sliding off of the icy trail on his way back out.”
The family was trying to get back to their hotel in Gorham, New Hampshire.
The family had no cell service at the scene, but they were able to use the minivan’s roadside assistance feature to get help.
Authorities said the family was stranded for seven hours.
“Jefferson Notch Road, like many seasonal New Hampshire roads, becomes a snowmobile trail during the winter,” according to the New Hampshire Fish and Game. “Due to signage indicating such at the beginning of the road, Prajapati was cited for operating a conventional vehicle on a snowmobile trail.”