Two Volcano Researchers Rescued from Baffin Island*

By: Brown Press

Published: September 5, 1998

Two volcano researchers were rescued Friday night on Mount Asgard on Baffin Island after their helicopter iced up in an unexpected freezing rain event. The pair spent two nights in the helicopter before descending the steep slopes of the mountain on foot. Both were suffering from mild dehydration and hypothermia.

Princeton University geographers, Soren Anderson and Murphy Crossfield, are recovering at the Baffin Regional Hospital.

Radio calls from the helicopter Wednesday and Thursday went unanswered. Crossfield indicated that there was some odd static and radio interference that prevented them from reaching anyone.

“It could have been the storm that interfered with the radio,” Anderson said. “Either way, we were well equipped to get out of there.”

A rescue helicopter collected the researchers on Friday night after they were able to reach a location where they could send a signal.

The pair were researching flood basalts on Baffin Island when they took a detour to Asgard.

“We were just sightseeing on our way home when that storm blew in,” Crossfield notes. “Asgard has nothing to do with our research. The climb down was sure gnarly though.”

The weather forecast had been for clear skies. “You just never know what’s going to blow in when you’re working in the Arctic, and the conditions can play tricks on you,” Anderson said. “That’s why it’s always best to carry all your survival gear.”

Rescue helicopter pilot, Evan Reimer, indicated that the pair looked quite relieved to be retrieved. “The light levels were already starting to get too low for a safe landing, but we pushed it because we knew another storm was coming and Anderson indicated that they might not make it another night. By the time we got to them, Crossfield was in rough shape temperature-wise. I’m just glad we were able to get them out when we did.”

Anderson and Crossfield plan to continue their research on Baffin Island in a few days. “We just need to rescue our helicopter,” Crossfield indicated.

Update September 6, 1998: The original article has been edited to remove references to Crossfield talking about a hole in the world that was witnessed by helicopter mechanic Frank Beckston. Crossfield has stated that he did not make any reference to a hole in the world and Beckston has withdrawn his comments, indicating that he must have misheard.

*This article is an easter egg for the novel Apocalypse Weird: Reversal. It is a work of fiction. Any references to real people, events, locales or organizations are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are imaginary, and any resemblance to actual places, events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.