A Cutler man was rescued Sunday night after he fell through the ice and into a bog.
Pete Taylor, 78, left his home about 7 a.m. Sunday to search for moose antlers near Cocoa Mountain Road in Cutler. It was an area he frequented, and he told his family he would return around noon, according to Mark Latti, a spokesperson for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.
When Taylor never returned home, his family went out searching for him and eventually found his ATV about 4 p.m. but were unable to find him by the time it started sleeting heavily, Latti said Monday night.
Rescuers searched into the night for Taylor, and game wardens eventually came within earshot of him about 8 p.m. and followed the sound of his voice until they found him.
Taylor told rescuers he had fallen through the bog ice while looking for moose antlers. He was able to pull himself out of the bog, but had become thoroughly soaked and disoriented as hypothermia set in, according to Latti.
At one point, Taylor told rescuers he felt like falling asleep and was sure he wouldn’t wake up again. But then he heard the siren of a game warden and mustered the energy to stay awake and listen for help.
Game wardens warmed Taylor around a fire before helping him walk out of the woods to a waiting ambulance, where he was examined and then released to his family.
Winter’s warm start has created hazardous ice conditions on bodies of water across the state, leading to the deaths of two Mainers since the start of the year and prompting fishing derbies to cancel out of safety concerns.
