Karina Barriga Albring
News Editor
A group of Keene State College students found a body during a class outing to Beaver Brook Falls on Route 9. The body was discovered around noon on Thursday, Feb. 28, about 3 miles away from the KSC campus.
Keene Police Department said the victim is a 52-year-old female. Sergeant Mike Kopcha of the Keene Police Department, said the identity of the victim cannot be released. However, he indicated the victim was a female Keene resident.
The cause of death has not yet been determined. “There is no evidence that indicates anything suspicious. It seems that there was no foul-play,” Kopcha said.
Kopcha would not comment on the possibility of a suicide. The autopsy is scheduled for tomorrow morning. “The autopsy will reveal details that we don’t have right now,” Kopcha said.
The KSC students who found the body were from Professor Karen Seaver’s Conservation of the Ecosystem class.
Timothy Dolan, one of the students on the outing, said when the students got to the trail they saw a body facing down in the snow. “We wanted to see if the person needed help, so we got closer and tried to see if we got an answer,” Dolan said.
He said after they approached the person and got no response, they called 911. The students talked to the police and then passed the phone over to their professor.
According to Dolan, an ambulance and some police cars got to the scene within minutes. Dolan said the students didn’t alter the scene and saw nothing suspicious around the body.
Beaver Brook Falls is a popular hiking train in Keene. The trail is described by newenglandwaterfalls.com as an easy to moderate hiking trail and handicap accessible. The trail takes around 15 minutes to hike.
The Equinox will provide more information when available.