16 The Courier sun • february 6, 2014 for breaking news visit www.couriersun.com Middle Village hiker rescued on Hawaiian volcano BY CRISTABELLE TUMOLA ctumola@queenscourier.com A Queens man is lucky to be alive after a snowstorm stranded the hiker near the summit of a Hawaiian volcano. Alex Sverdlov, 36, a Middle Village resident and Brooklyn College professor, began climbing Mauna Loa, on the Big Island, on Sunday January 26, the National Park Service (NPS) said. He reached the 13,677-foot summit on Tuesday, January 28, after dropping off his heavy gear at a lower elevation, but, as he was descending, a snowstorm struck. That night, Sverdlov tried to find the gear he left behind, but was unsuccessful, the NPS said. With only the clothes he had on for protection and a bottle of frozen water, he decided to stay put until sunrise. He managed to locate his pack Wednesday morning, but was forced to spend another night on Mauna Loa. Sverdlov, who had successfully climbed the volcano last winter, was “worried that he’d die” there, said the NPS. “I’ve done many crazy hikes, but this one pretty much tops the bill,” Sverdlov said. But the local park rangers hadn’t forgotten about him. They first tried to call Sverdlov’s cell phone, but couldn’t reach him. They then located his car on Mauna Loa Road, and when they saw it was still there Wednesday, rangers launched a helicopter search, locating him by 9 a.m. Thursday. Rescued hiker Alex Sverdlov (middle) stands with his rescuers, park ranger John Broward (right) and park ranger Tyler Paul (left). “What saved Alex is that he had a backcountry permit, so we knew he was up there. He is extremely fit and he stayed calm,” said John Broward, who serves as the park’s search-and-rescue coordinator. Despite the near-death experience, Sverdlov is not giving up his hiking adventures. The same afternoon he was rescued, he NPS Photo/J.Ferracane applied for another backcountry permit, for the park’s remote coastal area, the NPS said. “This time I’m going to the sunny part of the park,” Sverdlov said. OBTAIN A FAST DIVORCE IN AS LITTLE AS 24 HOURS WE ARE HERE TO HELP! Visit us online or Call Now! SERVING THE COMMUNITY FOR OVER 50 YEARS! A leader in the fast divorce business has been Divorcefast.com of Massachusetts, a company that has been providing speedy, low-cost foreign divorces for 50 years. The company provides divorces that can be completed in as little as one day in Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and the U.S. offshore island of Guam. According to Alan Alford, proprietor of Divorcefast.com, some of the divorces offered require travel to the court, while some can be done without any travel or court appearance. Some require both parties to sign the court petition for divorce, while others can be achieved with only one party signing. All of the divorces happen very quickly and with a minimal amount of paperwork. The divorces are valid and recognized everywhere, and Alford reports that he processes several thousand of them every year, particularly for New Yorkers. The total cost for fast divorces starts at $995, raising the price to as high as $1,500. All of the divorces, Alford says, are completed within a few days and the clients are then free to remarry or otherwise continue with their lives as single persons. Anyone interested in more details about the Divorcefast offerings can access the company web site at www.divorcefast.com. The forms and instructions can be printed out from there and submitted to the company. For those lacking Internet access, Alford and his staff are prepared to discuss foreign divorces on the phone, at 978-443-8387, or by mail directed to Divorcefast.com, 365 Boston Post Road, Sudbury, MA 01776.. THE PROCESS IS QUICK, EASY, LEGAL & AFFORDABLE 978.443.8387 WWW.DIVORCEFAST.COM
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