Ridge Meadows Search and Rescue were busy over the weekend, helping two injured hikers out of Golden Ears Provincial Park.
A man with a broken leg was rescued from a trail in the park on Saturday.
Just before 4 p.m. on July 3, two hikers, returning from their own trek reported to Ridge Meadows Search and Rescue, RMSAR, that they had passed a man with a lower leg injury who looked to be immobile.
Search and Rescue team members were already at the park, at the West Canyon trailhead, with representatives from AdventureSmart, a national education program that teaches people how to be safe while enjoying outdoor recreational activities. They were interacting with park users on hiking safety and trip planning.
RMSAR quickly put together a team to search for the injured man.
The call came in at 3:47 p.m., explained Rick Laing with RMSAR, who received a text from one of his members and then proceeded to notify B.C. Ambulance.
The rescue, he said, took about six hours to complete.
The team hiked up the West Canyon Trail to the junction, where they split up. One group hiked towards Evans Peak and the other went up towards Alouette, Laing explained.
It was the team along the Evans Peak Trail that spotted the hiker by the Viewpoint Trail.
“So it was quite a ways up,” said Laing, noting that the hike to the injured man likely took the team at least an hour and a half.
“It’s fairly steep trail,” he added.
The team determined that the man most likely sustained a leg fracture after a fall and called for a helicopter long-line rescue with assistance from Coquitlam SAR.
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“But we had one of our members do the actual long-line rescue,” noted Laing.
The man was flown to the West Canyon parking lot where an ambulance was waiting.
Search and Rescue noted that the man had many of the 10 essentials for hiking and was adequately equipped for the day.
He had also left a trip plan that made it easy for SAR members to contact his family and inform them of the incident, ensuring a safe conclusion.
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On Sunday, July 4, Search and Rescue were once again called to Golden Ears park for a woman who fractured her wrist.
The hikers, who were between the horse corral and Mike Lake, where there is cell phone service, called 911 at about 2 p.m..
B.C. Ambulance requested SAR to help.
“If B.C. Ambulance or RCMP ask us to go, we’re going to go,” said Laing.
The information they generally get from injured individuals is usually fairly sparse, he said, and sometimes when a person injures themselves, they don’t realize the totality of their injuries. There could be another injury they are unaware of, explained Laing.
This rescue was over in about three hours, because there was relatively easy access, he noted. The woman was taken by SAR to a waiting ambulance.
Laing wants to remind hikers to be safe while enjoying the outdoors.
“Let somebody know where you are going. Make sure you’ve got all the necessary equipment,” he said.
Also, make sure you are familiar with the area you are going into, know where you are going and where the trails lead.
“And beware of the heat,” said Laing, adding bring plenty of water.
Information on outdoor safety, including what equipment to bring and how to fill out a trip plan, can be found that can be found at adventuresmart.ca.
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