Crews at Waterton Lakes National Park responded to a distress call early Wednesday afternoon on the slopes of Crandell Mountain. A female hiker had been unable to finish an ascent of the mountain with her team, and was evacuated to hospital.
Brent Kozachenko, Mountain Safety Specialist for the park, said that the initial report was received by telephone shortly after 2p.m. in the afternoon of Wednesday, May 27. The leader of the group of hikers placed a call to the Parks Canada warden’s office using his cellular telephone, requesting assistance from the park.
The female hiker was said to be in her early 20s, and was unable to complete the scramble with her group. She was said to be experiencing severe medical problems.
A helicopter from nearby Fernie, British Columbia, was sent to the national park to complete the rescue operation.
Kozachenko and a colleague were suspended on fixed lines beneath the helicopter, in what is known as a “sling rescue operation.”
Sling rescues are performed in cases where a helicopter cannot land in the backcountry to assist in the distress call.
Select Parks Canada rescue crews have practised sling rescue operations for decades, indicated Kozachenko.
Helicopter sling rescue operations are governed by the Canadian Aviation Regulations. Annual training with rescue pilots and rescue technicians is reuired.
Waterton normally uses pilots available in Cranbrook or Fernie.
“It’s a quick process that minimizes hover time,” Kozachenko said. Kozachenko’s team was suspended from the chopper by a fixed line and dropped at the site of the distress call.
After an assessment of the patient’s health, the woman was put in a specific medical bag and suspended from the helicopter, which returned to the park warden’s office.
The helicopter reached the warden’s office by 4:10p.m. The woman was then transferred to EMS staff and taken by ground ambulance to hospital.
Had the rescue operation been conducted on foot, the mission would have required four or five personnel working until dusk, Kozachenko expressed.
The helicopter sling allowed for a quick rescue operation, he said.
Normal scenarios see people fall and hurt themselves, experience medical problems or become too scared to complete a scramble in the back country, says Kozachenko, resulting in sling rescue operations.
Parks Canada encourages backcountry hikers to contact their office prior to mountain scrambles in the park.
“Park staff are always available,” said Kozachenko. Staff can make route suggestions and offer appropriate route planning in addition to giving information on current conditions. This year’s late spring means there is more snow on routes, he said, and scramblers should travel with an ice ax and know how to self arrest.
Wednesday’s events were the result of a medical problem rather than an accident, but all scramblers should be aware of the dangers inherent in their sport, he suggested, and be prepared for the trails.
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