Fernie Search and RescueFernie Search and Rescue is dedicated to assisting those individuals who find themselves in emergency situations in the wilderness surrounding the Fernie area. The group was formed in the 1970s and has been involved in hundreds of rescues and saved many lives.Fernie Search and Rescue1 month agoFernie SAR continues to be called upon regularly for winter rescues. Calls in the last few weeks have included injured snowmobilers and skiers, as well as providing specialised air support to neighboring groups. Winter themes continue:- · Parties needing assistance will need a sat-enabled device. Cellphones will rarely have signal or sufficient power. SPOT and InReach continue to be the devices that work the most reliably, based on recent experiences. · Backcountry recreationalists that take emergency precautions stand the best chances of a successful outcome in the event of an accident. The ability to provide first aid, keep injured people warm and call for help is essential. · The SAR model seeks the necessary resources at the time of the emergency – there are not rescuers and helicopters standing by at all times of the day and night. As such, while Plan A may be a 20 minute long-line response, Plan B will often involve a gruelling multi-hour ground extraction. For long-line responses to take place, trained rescuers, specially-certified pilots and adapted aircraft all need to be available, with sufficient daylight remaining to complete the mission. · By way of example, a rescue of an injured snowmobiler this weekend required moving someone in a toboggan through blizzard conditions and treacherous terrain. The rescue took over 10 hours and was completed at 4am. These responses are hard on subjects and hard on the rescuers. As usual, all our responses involve team work with our amazing rescue partners throughout the valley. #bcsara206715View on FacebookFernie Search and Rescue2 months agoLet's play smart for the next few days. #avalanchecanada2940View on FacebookFernie Search and Rescue3 months agoBusy season started for Fernie SAR during the Christmas break. Calls have included an all-night response for some lost sledders, a number of injured sledders needing medevac and a fatality. Rescue messages remain the same: how are you going to call for help (cellphones won't work away from the valley); how will you stay warm and provide first aid while you wait for help and also recognising how early it goes dark, changing an air response to a ground response. The latter takes many hours. We have had some experience with people calling for help via the iPhone 14 that has sat messaging. There is no doubt that this is a great tool, but we recommend InReach or Spot type devices as well. Recent experience suggests that location data is not automatically embedded in the iPhone messaging, which caused issues recently. Also a lot of folk are using their phones for other things during the day - the battery may be weak by the time you need help. Keeping a dedicated emergency communication device pays off when you really need it. As usual, our work is a partnership with 911 agencies and neighboring groups. Stay safe out there!147816View on FacebookFernie Search and Rescue6 months agoUpdate on Fernie SAR responses since our last update. The team has been busy throughout the late summer and Fall:- · Biking injuries on both Contra and Trail Dogs that required extrication; · A couple of searches for missing people, one at Rosen Lake and one in Wardner, providing K9 support to a neighbouring SAR group, as well as a missing 12 year old in the Castle Mountain area – all were found safe and well; · A call from a hiker on Mt Procter who felt scared there might be bears in the area (please don’t call SAR for this!); · A hiker with a broken leg on Heiko’s Trail; · A couple of callouts to support Waterton Parks Visitor Safety for missing and injured hikers; · A rescue of a 65 year old woman injured near the top of Mt Fernie after a fall off the trail. Overwhelming themes are that accidents happen, as much as you may prepare. What differentiates a good outcome from a bad one is what planning has been made in case of an incident. Being able to call for help, having first aid and warm clothing and knowing that someone somewhere will call for help for you if needed (a trip plan) make a huge difference. This will become all the more pronounced as we head into the colder weather – wilderness rescue can take hours – specialised resources are not always immediately available. Sitting in the sun waiting for help is very different to sitting in the rain or snow. As always, rescues are teamwork with our amazing partners at the RCMP, BCAS and Fernie Fire/Rescue. Many rescues require the expertise of our colleagues at Ascent and Bighorn Helicopters. Stay safe out there! #bcsara154410View on FacebookFernie Search and Rescue8 months agoBusy season continues. Recent tasks have included injured mountain bikers, runners and hikers, medical responses including heat-related and cardiac emergencies as well as mutual aid work with neighbouring SAR groups. Please note earlier statements from Parks Canada regarding the challenges of timely air responses during wildfire season. As always, these tasks are team work with partner emergency agencies and Ascent Helicopters. Stay safe out there! #bcsara @ascenthelicopters6022View on FacebookFernie Search and Rescue9 months ago2281411View on Facebook