Officials in eastern Kentucky say they are considering changes to a popular trail after dozens of La Salle University students were stranded for hours on a cold mountian.
Pine Mountain Conference Director Shad Baker says that options under consideration include improving signs along the trail to Bad Branch Falls, adding maps, and closing the area during inclement weather. Officials plan to hike the trail to see if they can come up with other suggestions to improve safety.
Officials say 37 students and three staff members were spending spring break building houses for Habitat for Humanity last Thursday when they got lost hiking in Bad Branch Falls, a nature preserve near Whitesburg. The group was rescued safely after an 8-hour effort in rough terrain and 15-degree temperatures. The students were treated at a Kentucky-area hospital and then arrived back on campus early Sunday morning.
Jon Caroulis, La Salle’s director of media relations, says he welcomes the possible changes.
“Anything that makes for safety I think is great,” Caroulis told NBC10.com.
The students, who are not talking about their experience at this time, are doing fine, according to Caroulis.
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