Death on the Conn River Hinsdale Railroad Bridge: I warned everyone it was comming

I warned them this was a extraordinary dangerous bridge and a death was right around the corner. This was a totally preventable accident. I bet you the bridge is about 100 years old.  

Saturday, August 30, 2014:The Local Cult of Teenager Death: Brattleboro Ford and the Local Newspaper

This bridge should be torned down or the entrances should be fence off. Could create a fenced walk way across the railroad bed.

Bet you the family can sue the owners...

Recovery mission continues: Missing man identified as Hinsdale, N.H., resident

By Harmony Birch, hbirch@reformer.com

HINSDALE N.H. — Andrew Laffond, 29, from Hinsdale, was seen falling off an old railway bridge and into the Connecticut River around 8 p.m. Wednesday night.

Thursday morning and afternoon, the New Hampshire Fish and Game department surveyed the scene to see if it was safe to send divers into the river, while officers from the Hinsdale Police Department offered assistance and surveyed the banks.

Laffond was with a friend walking along a bridge linking Brattleboro, Vt., and Hinsdale when he fell. Two fisherman saw the fall from the shore.

Attempts to find Laffond on shore have proven unsuccessful. The New Hampshire Fish and Game department has been conducting a recovery mission, meaning they don't expect to find Laffond alive. Officers have traveled from across the state to find Laffond.

Lt. David Walsh, from New Hampshire Fish and Game, said he didn't have "high hopes" for recovering a body on Thursday. The department sent out four divers around 2 p.m. and were waiting on a sonar device.

"It's a very strong current and there is no visibility," Walsh said. "So it's the worst diving scenario possible, and if it becomes too dangerous we have to pull up."

The sonar device should work regardless of visibility. If nothing can be recovered through diving and sonar, Walsh said, the next step would be to "hurry up and wait." The water from the river should go down and visibility should increase within the next few days. Divers will rotate each day that the recovery mission continues.

Walsh has called the Vernon Dam to see if officials could decrease the water, or put up a barricade, but he said nothing could be done.

The rail bridge has been inactive for as long as Police Chief Todd Faulkner has been in Hinsdale, at least 21 years. He said the bridge gets a lot of foot traffic. "We know that it is usually [used] by individuals who don't want to be monitored," he said. Brattleboro's homeless population uses the bridge, according to Faulkner. It's not common for people to fall off the bridge, he said. It's not illegal to walk across the bridge, but Faulkner has had complaints about kids jumping off during the summer time and complaints about parties.

Faulkner confirmed that there was an ongoing open investigation into the incident.

The river is still being used for recreational purposes. Walsh said if someone finds anything relating to the recovery they should call 911. It's possible that a body could float down the river. Walsh recounted an incident where a body had floated 38 miles from Charlestown, N.H. to Vermont. If nothing is found within a few days, Walsh will be calling Massachusetts to expand the search.

The search started Wednesday night after authorities received a call for help around 8:25 p.m. The Brattleboro Police and Fire departments, Rescue Inc., and the Hinsdale Police and Fire departments attempted to find Laffonds's body but were unsuccessful. The area of the river he fell in was in New Hampshire territory, but Brattleboro rescuers contributed to the operation because of their proximity, equipment and because they have trained divers, Brattleboro Fire Chief Mike Bucossi said.

The search and rescue team had rafts deployed within five minutes of their arrival and set up a base of operations at the Riverside Drive Industrial Complex. Other departments were checking the man's home and making search efforts on the shore, Brattleboro Fire Captain Ron Hubbard said. However, divers determined after getting into the water that the situation was unsafe in which to dive.

"It's murky. It's swift. There's a flow of debris," Hubbard said.

Like New Hampshire Fish and Game, The Brattleboro Fire Department was operating a recovery mission.

"No one saw him come out of the water," Bucossi said.

However, Rescue Inc.was on standby. Rescue Inc. Chief Drew Hazelton said he had medical personnel on site to serve as a support unit. Rescue Inc. left the scene around 10 p.m., Hazelton said. Bucossi said his team started packing up around 10:30 p.m.

Conditions are expected to improve as the weather warms up and water lowers.

"We hope and pray for the best," Walsh said. "But we're prepared for the worst."