Not sure about what others think, but it strikes me that if someone is out in the wilderness for recreation and they get lost, need help or have some emergency and need to be rescued then I see no reason not to charge for a rescue. Certainly there are circumstances where a rescue charge may not be reasonable or may be waived, but for many recreational rescues it doesn't seem unreasonable to me to charge the folks who are rescued.
Thoughts?
Thoughts?
SAR team called to rescue missions
By Sam Van Schie - Nelson Star
Published: January 06, 2010 6:00 PM
http://www.bclocalnews.com/kootenay_rockies/nelsonstar/news/80861722.html
Whitewater ski patrol assisted with their first out-of-bounds rescue of the year on the morning of New Year’s Eve.
Two 54-year-old backcountry skiers from Calgary were reported overdue to Nelson Search and Rescue the night before. When the SAR team were able to locate the skiers — exhausted and travelling in the wrong direction, away from the parking lot they were looking for — Whitewater sent a snow cat out to the north end of Hummingbird Pass to bring them back.
While ski patrol advertises at their ski area boundary that there is a minimum $500 charge for an out-of-bounds rescue, the couple was not charged for the assistance they required, in part because SAR did the majority of the work and located the couple. SAR, a specially trained group of volunteer rescuers, never charges the public for their services.
However, according to Kirk Jensen, outdoor operations manager at Whitewater, before the ski resort started advertising the minimum charge, they were doing five to 10 rescues out of bounds each year. Now they’re down to two to three.
“I think when people realized they might have to pay for a rescue, they started being a lot more careful,” said Jensen. “More people are going out with the equipment and skill they need to handle a situation, if they get in trouble.”
There is currently a considerable risk of avalanche in the Kootenay Boundary and ski patrol has been knocking down size one and two avalanches with explosives in the in-bounds avalanche terrain. A size two avalanche is big enough to injure or kill somebody.
In Rossland on Jan. 4, a snowmobiler perished in an avalanche while travelling in the back country.
Because of the danger travelling on volatile terrain, even the search and rescue crews are reluctant to be on the mountains at night.
SAR responded to five calls to assist with backcountry rescues in the Whitewater area over the holiday. Two were false alarms and one was resolved before SAR responded.
In the two cases where rescue was required, the calls came in the evening when people didn’t return from trips in the backcountry. In both cases it was deemed unsafe for rescuers to go into the area before dawn.
“We don’t want to put responders at unnecessary risk,” explained Cyndie Jones, a SAR search manager in Nelson who led both of the backcountry rescues.
The first holiday rescue was on Dec. 21, when a male snowboarder was reported overdue. The SAR team stationed two members on the road to Whitewater to do a “sound sweep” where they use the sound and light from their vehicle sirens driving up and down the street throughout the night, in hopes the person will see it and find their way towards them.
In this case, the male did manage to make his way out during the night.
“He wasn’t somebody who was prepared to be out overnight, but he was physically fit and knowledgeable of the area,” said Jones. “He made a snow cave until the clouds lifted enough that he could determine from the sky what direction he had to go.”
The SAR members picked him up on the road, tired but safe.
The second call was for the two Calgarians. The search began the same way, but SAR was unable to locate them during the night with their sound sweep.
In the morning, 18 members responded on skis and in a helicopter. However, the helicopter had to be grounded because of bad weather.
“There’s a lot of people that go out to the backcountry assuming that if anything happens, search and rescue will swoop down with a helicopter and rescue them. That’s not always the case,” said Jones, noting the helicopter was used mainly for risk assessment of the area.
The couples tracks were spotted in 5 Mile Basin, heading in the wrong direction. The experienced SAR ski team caught up to them and told Whitewater of their location for the cat ski pickup. The SAR team skiied out themselves.
Jones noted the couple were fit and outdoor savvy. They were prepared to stay overnight and had signed in at the Whitewater registry, so people knew they were out. However, the one mistake they made was to keep moving after dusk.
SAR recommends when people find themselves lost and in trouble to acknowledge this and stay put.
“Make a plan to take care of yourself by building a shelter,” said Jones. “Then make yourself visible once it’s light and get out in the open and make yourself visible and heard by blowing a whistle.”
For more information about staying safe in your outdoor pursuits, visit AdventureSmart.ca.
By Sam Van Schie - Nelson Star
Published: January 06, 2010 6:00 PM
http://www.bclocalnews.com/kootenay_rockies/nelsonstar/news/80861722.html
Whitewater ski patrol assisted with their first out-of-bounds rescue of the year on the morning of New Year’s Eve.
Two 54-year-old backcountry skiers from Calgary were reported overdue to Nelson Search and Rescue the night before. When the SAR team were able to locate the skiers — exhausted and travelling in the wrong direction, away from the parking lot they were looking for — Whitewater sent a snow cat out to the north end of Hummingbird Pass to bring them back.
While ski patrol advertises at their ski area boundary that there is a minimum $500 charge for an out-of-bounds rescue, the couple was not charged for the assistance they required, in part because SAR did the majority of the work and located the couple. SAR, a specially trained group of volunteer rescuers, never charges the public for their services.
However, according to Kirk Jensen, outdoor operations manager at Whitewater, before the ski resort started advertising the minimum charge, they were doing five to 10 rescues out of bounds each year. Now they’re down to two to three.
“I think when people realized they might have to pay for a rescue, they started being a lot more careful,” said Jensen. “More people are going out with the equipment and skill they need to handle a situation, if they get in trouble.”
There is currently a considerable risk of avalanche in the Kootenay Boundary and ski patrol has been knocking down size one and two avalanches with explosives in the in-bounds avalanche terrain. A size two avalanche is big enough to injure or kill somebody.
In Rossland on Jan. 4, a snowmobiler perished in an avalanche while travelling in the back country.
Because of the danger travelling on volatile terrain, even the search and rescue crews are reluctant to be on the mountains at night.
SAR responded to five calls to assist with backcountry rescues in the Whitewater area over the holiday. Two were false alarms and one was resolved before SAR responded.
In the two cases where rescue was required, the calls came in the evening when people didn’t return from trips in the backcountry. In both cases it was deemed unsafe for rescuers to go into the area before dawn.
“We don’t want to put responders at unnecessary risk,” explained Cyndie Jones, a SAR search manager in Nelson who led both of the backcountry rescues.
The first holiday rescue was on Dec. 21, when a male snowboarder was reported overdue. The SAR team stationed two members on the road to Whitewater to do a “sound sweep” where they use the sound and light from their vehicle sirens driving up and down the street throughout the night, in hopes the person will see it and find their way towards them.
In this case, the male did manage to make his way out during the night.
“He wasn’t somebody who was prepared to be out overnight, but he was physically fit and knowledgeable of the area,” said Jones. “He made a snow cave until the clouds lifted enough that he could determine from the sky what direction he had to go.”
The SAR members picked him up on the road, tired but safe.
The second call was for the two Calgarians. The search began the same way, but SAR was unable to locate them during the night with their sound sweep.
In the morning, 18 members responded on skis and in a helicopter. However, the helicopter had to be grounded because of bad weather.
“There’s a lot of people that go out to the backcountry assuming that if anything happens, search and rescue will swoop down with a helicopter and rescue them. That’s not always the case,” said Jones, noting the helicopter was used mainly for risk assessment of the area.
The couples tracks were spotted in 5 Mile Basin, heading in the wrong direction. The experienced SAR ski team caught up to them and told Whitewater of their location for the cat ski pickup. The SAR team skiied out themselves.
Jones noted the couple were fit and outdoor savvy. They were prepared to stay overnight and had signed in at the Whitewater registry, so people knew they were out. However, the one mistake they made was to keep moving after dusk.
SAR recommends when people find themselves lost and in trouble to acknowledge this and stay put.
“Make a plan to take care of yourself by building a shelter,” said Jones. “Then make yourself visible once it’s light and get out in the open and make yourself visible and heard by blowing a whistle.”
For more information about staying safe in your outdoor pursuits, visit AdventureSmart.ca.
