Sunshine Coast Search and Rescue volunteers saved a man who broke his leg in a remote area of Narrows Inlet on July 29.
The unnamed man, who appeared to be in his late 20s, had been riding ATVs with a group of five friends in the area when he lost control of his quad with a female passenger on the back.
“They were kind of going through a technical section that was on snow and it was downhill and a bit off-camber,” said Don Neville, Sunshine Coast Search and Rescue president.
“Basically their ATV slid sideways in the snow and hit some rocks that caused it to roll onto its side, which went onto the driver’s leg and caused the passenger to fall off. As she put her hands out, I guess she broke her finger on the uneven rocks.”
The driver suffered a badly broken leg and his friends quickly realized they needed help.
“Two people stayed with the two subjects and two went down to the camp at the end of Tzoonie River and called out from there,” Neville said.
By the time the call was relayed to Sunshine Coast Search and Rescue, the man and his passenger had been sitting with injuries for about three hours. It would take Search and Rescue about another hour and a half to arrive on scene.
“It is a remote area, but luckily the weather was good so we were able to use Airspan Helicopters to get us out there,” Neville said.
Six volunteers loaded their gear onto the helicopter and headed to the spot where the ATVers were injured, but they couldn’t get as close as they wanted due to the size of the helicopter and the lack of a clear landing space.
Volunteers unloaded and hiked down to the injured people, splinting the man’s leg and treating the woman’s broken finger.
“The male was definitely in extreme pain,” Neville said.
Surveying the area, the rescue crew spotted a clearing that could accommodate a smaller helicopter and they called one in to assist, rather than risk hiking with the man on a stretcher. The move also saved time, allowing the injured man to be transferred to hospital faster.
He was taken by helicopter to the Wilson Creek airport, where an ambulance was waiting to transfer him to Sechelt Hospital.
Neville said the ATVers made the right choice by having two people stay with the injured riders and two people travel to a spot where cell phone coverage was available, when help was needed.
He said the safety message is to be prepared and have a plan of action if someone gets hurt while in a remote area.
“Try to have the 10 essentials and make sure you have appropriate safety gear as well as some kind of communication device,” he said.
Sunshine Coast Search and Rescue is a volunteer organization that serves the entire Sunshine Coast and right now they’re recruiting new members.
Neville said anyone who loves the outdoors and loves to help people is a good candidate to join their team and all of the training needed is provided, free of charge.
If you would like to learn more or want to join, check out their website at www.sunshinecoastsar.ca
