STODDARD — A 17-year-old from Stoddard was safely located Saturday evening after becoming lost in the woods during an afternoon walk with friends.
The teenager was reported missing to authorities at about 6:30 p.m. when he failed to return home from a walk that started around noon.
According to the 911 call made by his mother, the young man had ventured into the local trails without any hiking equipment, food, or water.
Earlier in the day, at 3:40 p.m., a text message was sent to the juvenile’s mother from one of his friends, indicating that the group had made it across the woods and that her son had decided to head back through the trails alone.
Concern grew when there was no sign of him by early evening.
Local emergency services were alerted, initiating a response to locate the missing juvenile who was not carrying a cell phone and was not familiar with the trail system.
In a fortunate turn of events, the teen emerged from the wooded area by himself around 7:00 p.m., unharmed and without the need for rescue assistance.
Following the incident, New Hampshire Fish and Game officials issued a reminder to the public about the importance of sharing travel plans with others before entering wooded or remote areas.
