HANOVER — A New Hampshire Fish and Game official said Tuesday it cost roughly $19,000 in personnel and other associated costs to rescue a Dartmouth College student who had been missing on Mount Moosilauke in May.
New Hampshire Fish and Game Col. Kevin Jordan said on Tuesday that Dartmouth College already has cut the state agency a check for that amount.
However, the college still could be on the hook for an additional $40,000 if the Air National Guard bills Fish and Game for the Guard helicopter that was used to help find Arun Hari Anand, 21, of Collegeville, Pa., during a college-sponsored hike.
The college already has vowed to pay for the entire search-and-rescue operation.
Right now, Jordan said, the Guard is trying to get a waiver from the U.S. government so it doesn’t have to bill Fish and Game.
“I was very impressed with the way the college responded to this,” Jordan said on Tuesday. “They acknowledged some mistakes were made and were very appreciative of the (rescue) efforts.”
College officials have since said there were “a number of troubling factors” with the hike that led to the two-day search-and-rescue efforts to find Anand. Jordan previously said it was a miracle Anand was found alive.
Dartmouth’s Outdoor Programming Office Director Tim Burdick has since resigned, though he hasn’t said specifically why.