6 minute read
Grotto Ice Rescue
It’s been said that exploration makes the world a better place.
As humans, we advance by learning new things. Our minds and bodies are built to explore both new ideas and new environs. We know we do better when we invite new perspectives and our problems can be solved by a novel realization or innovation. Our process of inquiry is what propels us forward and enables us to grow our experience and understanding.
Sometimes curiosity can lead to dangerous circumstances, as happened on February 21, 2021, when two people hiking near the Grotto in Bruce Peninsula National Park became stranded on an ice floe after it detached from the coastline.
The pair ended up drifting three kilometres over the deepest waters in Georgian Bay, triggering a full-scale rescue by the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Trenton (operated by the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Coast Guard) who sent in a C-130 Hercules turboprop aircraft to keep an eye on the hikers’ moving location. The couple were eventually airlifted by an OPP helicopter that scooped them up and hovered mere feet from the surface before carrying them back to safety.
Grey Bruce OPP Acting Inspector Debra Anderson said in a release, “This situation could have ended in tragedy.”
It was a daring accomplishment and incredible team effort, but one that left many of the first responders wondering: Could there have been a safer way?
The local fire department was early on the scene, but their waterrescue response protocol restricts them to shore-based rescues on a tether; given the rate at which the hikers were floating away, they couldn’t reach them in time.
For Zane Davies—trained to the gills in ice and water safety and former member of the Northern Bruce Peninsula Fire Department on the call that day—it was exceptionally difficult to be unable to respond, given he knew it could have been handled quickly with an untethered approach. With extensive experience in winter waters, including crossing a frozen Georgian Bay by SUP, his insight has taught him, “In order to effectively respond to an offshore emergency, you have to be able to leave shore.”
The drifters might have been safely escorted back to shore in a fraction of the time. Instead they would wait nearly three hours, unprotected, dramatically extending the risk of exposure.
Grey Bruce OPP Constable Rick Sadler stated, “It’s absolutely incredible to think of the personal danger that the helicopter and the crew put themselves in, as well as the imminent danger for these hikers. It must have been very harrowing to be on board on either side of that scenario.”
No doubt. Could the rescue have been safer? In my opinion, yes.
SUPs can be custom-shaped and tandem-ready both as watercraft and as sleds for hauling on ice. Given the conditions that day, a team of
LEFT PAGE Hikers trapped on ice floe. BELOW Northern Bruce Peninsula Fire Department responders and their Polar 75 RIT craft, shore-bound at Indian Head Cove. CALEY PATRICK DORAN
MOUNT RUNDLE RESCUE
Last October in Canmore, Alberta, a BASE jumper was rescued and airlifted to hospital after smashing into a rock face on Mount Rundle and clinging to the face of the mountain by a fist’s worth of parachute. After initial attempts, a helicopter rescue was deemed too risky; the rotor wash could endanger the jumper. Members of Kananaskis Country Public Safety Section, Alberta Parks (KCPS) and Parks Canada implemented a high-rope rescue and moved the victim to a ledge where he could be slung to safety via helicopter.
The KCPS is a professional search and rescue organization within the Ministry of Environment and Parks and works closely with conservation officers. KCPS staff are members of the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides and the Canadian Avalanche Association.
We’ve accepted that, with the right safety precautions, humans can freely explore the mountains. But there is no equivalent acceptance for the hardwater explorer. The KCPS and the above associations depend on the resources of highly trained personnel, who spend considerable amounts of time training in that environment. We could learn from that example. sufficiently trained and experienced hard-water paddle responders could have provided an escort back to shore. The elapsed rescue time could have been reduced to less than one hour.
If a paddle rescue had been deemed unfeasible, paddlers could have stabilized and maintained scene safety while waiting out the helicopter. They could have then offered on-site assistance to the air teams, donning harnesses on the hikers, monitoring and maintaining scene security and minimizing the danger of helicopter rotor wash destabilizing the ice.
The rescue that day was as safe as it could have been. But we can do better—if we can learn from it.
Could the circumstances of the ice floe detaching that day from shore have been predicted? The answer is yes. Multiple local guides noted the conditions that day were ripe for shore-docked floes to set sail that early afternoon.
To get down to brass tacks, in comparison to what occurred that day, a properly executed SUP rescue would have been not just safe and feasible, but more cost-effective.
Ice and water safety cannot be assumed. It must be earned. No doubt those drifting hikers learned something valuable from their experience that day at the Grotto.
We can expect to see more signage from Parks Canada at the Grotto this winter, warning of the dangers. But if Bruce County, Northern Bruce Peninsula and Parks Canada were to invite a new perspective on winter coastline rescues, their support could help make the peninsula and surrounding waters a safer and better place for everyone.
As Will Gadd, one of the world’s top rescue specialists and mixed climbers, once commented: ”You can always be safer.” –Scott Parent
Zane Davies covers 'ground' in mixed hard-water conditions, Georgian Bay. SCOTT PARENT
FIVE REASONS TO VISIT SIMCOE COUNTY THIS WINTER
Snow season has arrived! And, if weather predictions hold true (they always do, right?), we’re in for a winter chock-full of the white stuff. Don your layers and head outside to experience the wonders of Simcoe County covered in a blanket of fresh snow.
SHOE AND BREW WITH FREE SPIRIT TOURS
Slow down for an afternoon in a forest with a snowshoe adventure through Petun Conservation Area. Located just minutes from Blue Mountain Resort, the trail winds through picturesque woods and around steep rock faces and crevices. Never snowshoed before? No worries; the guides at Free Spirit provide all the equipment and instruction needed before leading the pack at a pace catered to each group’s abilities. Post-hike, head to a local brewery to recap your day on the snow. A flight of beer at Side Launch or Collingwood Brewery—or why not hit both?—is included with your tour. To finish reading this story, visit the Mountain Life website at www.mountainlifemedia.ca/SimcoeWinter
