THANKYOU NORTHSHORE RESCUE
TwoNorthShoreRescue volunteersscouraNorth Vancouverbackcountry creekinsearchofan injuredhiker,ascene fromSeason2of‘Search andRescue:NorthShore.’ COURTESYOFSILVAPARKFILMS
Volunteersearchandrescueteam reachesnewheightsin2024
BRENTRICHTER
brichter@nsnews.com
North Shore Rescue’s volunteers were called upon 139 times last year – an “average” call volume, says team leader Scott Merriman. But 2024 was by no meansan“average”yearforB.C.’sbusiest mountainrescueteam.
Merriman estimates the team put in well over 10,000 volunteer hours in response time, trainingandadministrativetasks.
According to the team’s stats, just under half of their calls (69) involved a helicopter. On 18 occasions, the team required the use of nightvisionflyingtorescuepeopleaftersunset.
Becauseoftheiruniqueskillsetandaccessto tools, North Shore Rescue was requested to aidotherteamsaroundtheprovince34times lastyear.
When an outside team requests help, it’s almostalwaysamatteroflifeanddeath.That wasthecaseinAugustwhentheywerecalled toabackcountryhutnearPembertonwherea manhadsufferedastroke.
“[He]endedupgoingunconscious,andwewere abletoflyinatnight.Ourdoctorintubatedhim, and we flew him back to Vancouver. It didn’t lookgood,butheendedupmakingaprettyfull recovery,”Merrimansaid,addingitwasoneof theteam’sproudermomentsin2024.
Because of changes in technology, the nature ofbackcountryrescuesischanging,Merriman said.
Adecadeago,itwasnotuncommonforNorth Shore Rescue to have multiple ground teams out for an all-night “ground and pound” search Thanks to smartphones with GPS coordinates and emergency SOS features and better cell coverage in the mountains, it’s far more common to know where the subject is beforetheysetoutnow
“We’re going into the field with a lot more knowns than unknowns, which is really good forthesafetyofourmembers,andit’sgoodfor thesubject,”hesaid.
Theteamalsoachievedsomeothermilestones in rescue technology in 2024, including the first-ever use of a motion sensor camera to alert the team to an out-of-bounds skier in dangerous terrain and using a drone to find a manwhowaslostinacanyon.
Like any organization, North Shore Rescue faces attrition as members move out of town, ageoutofactiveserviceorsimplycannolonger commit to the demands. The team welcomed newmembers-in-trainingin2024,thefirsttime they’d taken on new recruits in several years With the high cost of housing here, Merriman said, attracting and keeping new volunteers hasbeenachallenge,butthelatestclassshows greatpromise.
“WE’REGOINGINTOTHEFIELD WITHALOTMOREKNOWNSTHAN UNKNOWNS,WHICHISREALLYGOOD FORTHESAFETYOFOURMEMBERS, ANDIT’SGOODFORTHESUBJECT.”
“They’re doing quite well. They’re quite keen andengaged.They’realreadystartingtohelp,” hesaid.
NorthShoreRescuesawachangingoftheguard at the highest level in June, when Merriman took over the role of team leader from Mike Danks.Danksremainsaveryactivevolunteer. And the team returned to the small screen this year as the Knowledge Network aired the second season of Search and Rescue: North Shore. The way the show captures the volunteers’ work and their interactions with the public left Merriman with much to be proudof,hesaid.
Whenever the series airs, B.C.’s SAR teams tend to get a bump in donations, which is goodbecausesavinglivesdoesn’tcomecheap, Merrimansaid,andthegoodwillthedocuseries generatesmakesitswaytothevolunteers
“The service that we’re able to provide to the community at this level just wouldn’t be possible without that public donations and public support,” he said. “The thank-yous on social media, the thank-yous in the public, thosemeanalottoourmembers.” ■
Avalancheexpertconductsceaseless sciencetokeeprescuevolunteerssafe
saving volunteers out into potentially lifethreateningterrain.
As North Shore Rescue’s avalanche safety officer, Maheu is integrated into the organization’s command structure Before a rescue in avalanche terrain, he decides if it’s safe for a team to go If Maheu determines the conditionsaretoorisky,theteammighthaveto wait or find an alternative to get to the people indistress.
NICKLABA
nlaba@nsnews.com
Theever-shiftingsnowpackforeverchurns inthemindofAndré-JeanMaheu.
As the weather allows sheets of wintry white toclingtomountainslopesinourvastoutdoor playground, the avalanche expert must exerciseconstantobservationinordertodohis jobcorrectly.
“I essentially never switch off from November all the way to April,” Maheu said. “There’s not a single day that I don’t think about the snowpack, whether I’m working or not, because I don’t want to miss that important thingonmydayoff.”
That’s because a subtle change in wind or temperature could be a key data point in the risk assessments he has to make to send life-
“It doesn’t happen a lot, but there needs to be that safety net for the teams that they get a proper avalanche assessment prior to going intoterrain,”Maheusaid.
Using standards established by the Canadian avalanche association, Maheu factors in the current avalanche hazard rating with the complexity of the terrain to get to the rescue subject His safety plan could also involve specificguidancefortherescueteam.
“Yeah,sure,youcango,butyouhavetowatch forthisandavoidthat,”Maheusaid.
Or,ifhe’snottherewiththem,he’lllettheteam gotoacertainpointandthendirectthemover phoneorradio.
“I’llsay,‘OK,whatisitthatyou’reseeing?Can youtellmemoreaboutthesnowpack?’Andso on.Andthenmakeaplanfromthere,”Maheu said.
Inpartduetotherelativelystableconditionsin theregion,peopletendtomakeveryaggressive decisions in the backcountry, he said, which can lead to some tough decisions from rescue outfits.
“It’s their choice if they want to go ski in high avalanche hazard [conditions] into steep terrain. But if something happens – it doesn’t need to be an avalanche, they twist a knee or something –wemaynotbewillingtoactually gointothesameterrain,”Maheusaid.
Peopleneedtobemoreawarethatinorderfor rescuerstogettothem,ithastobereasonably safetodoso,hesaid.
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THANKYOU NORTH SHORERESCUE
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Thatdelicatebalancebetweenwantingtosave liveswhile not riskingtheir own givesmore weighttotheceaselessavalanchesciencethat Maheuobsessesover.
Justasnowball’sthrowfromthegroomedpiste at Grouse Mountain Resort,Maheu –known to manyas“AJ”–uses acompactshovelto carefullycutoutasectionofuntouchedwhite stuffonthehill.
With asquare-metrecross section in front of him,hespotslayersinthesnowpack,marking them with coloured popsicle sticks.Those layers generallycorrespond to dates,someof whichhavenicknames like the “December crust.”
Every onceina while, Maheu and other avalanchespecialistswillidentifyapersisting weaklayer.
“Then our jobistogoout anddig alot of theseprofilesondifferentaspectsindifferent elevations,lookingspecifically for that Decembercrust,seeinghow deep itisand whether it actuallyreacts to the snowpack test,” he said.“Can itactuallyproduce an avalanche?”
Forthat test,Maheu takes asaw to cut a column of snow from his cross section, coversitwithhisshovel,andbeginstapping it with his glovedhand.First,10fromthe wrist.Next,10fromtheelbow.Butthistime, he stops after three taps because the top layerofsnowslidesoff.
Does that mean the snowpackhereisready to mounta thunderous avalanche? “Not necessarily,”Maheusaid.
He takes amultitude of other data into account,suchas: Could someone punch throughthatcrusttotriggeraslide?
“If I’mskiing here,the crust is goingto distributemyweightvery well, and it’s going to be very difficultfor metotrigger this avalanche,”hesaid.
Despitemental images of adrenaline-junky skiers and snowboarders outrunning terrifyingtorrents of snow,manyofthe victims
claimedbyavalanchesaresnowshoers.
Duringhis seven years with NorthShore Rescue andnearlyfive with Squamish SAR, Maheusaidhe’sbeeninvolvedwithfourfatal avalanches that claimed10lives.All of them weresnowshoers.
Research from SFUhas shown arelativelack of awareness amongthis group of mountain users, whichMaheu and otherexperts have tried to remedywith campaigns and events tomakesnowshoersmoresavvytoavalanche risk.
“ITDOESN’THAPPENALOT,BUT THERENEEDSTOBETHATSAFETY NETFORTHETEAMSTHATTHEYGET APROPERAVALANCHEASSESSMENT PRIORTOGOINGINTOTERRAIN.”
Butanawarenessgapstillexists,Maheusaid, in part because the activity attracts more casual participantsthan backcountry skiers andsplit-boarders
Abig problem is that snowshoers often use summertrailsinwinter.
“Summer trails arenot designedtoavoid avalancheterrain,”hesaid.Outinthealpine, anypatchofsnowthesizeofatenniscourtor bigger,ona slopeof30degrees or steeper,is enoughtoburyyou.
Otherthingstobeawareofaretelltalesignsof instability.Atthetopofthelistareotherrecent avalanches,Maheusaid.
“It’samazingtoseehowpeoplewillwalkright past avalanches that arevery fresh andjust keepongoing,”hesaid.
Other signs areadistinct “whumpf”sound, signallingasuddenfallintheuppersnowpack duetoabreakinalowerlayer,orvisiblecracks shootingacrossthesnow.
“Theseareallbigalarmbellsthatyoushould definitelynot run home, butavoid goinginto anythingthathas alittle bit of incline to it,” Maheusaid.” ■
TheDistrictofWestVancouver extendsa heartfeltthank youto NorthShoreRescuevolunteers. We appreciate allthat youdo.
THANK YOU
Dronesagamechangerinthemountains,
BRENTRICHTER
brichter@nsnews.com
Neversendahumantodoarobot’sjob.
North Shore Rescue says that drones are increasinglybecomingacriticaltoolforfinding lost and injured people in the backcountry There have been at least three times now a thermal camera-mounted drone spotted a rescue subject long before volunteers would havefoundthemonfoot
In the winter of 2023, a hiking group returned toMountSeymourwithonemembermissing. Teamswereoutsearchingtheareawhenthey heard, albeit faintly, a voice deep down the mountainside.
“Ijustgridsearchedthatarea,untilIfinally,on my last battery, picked up a hot spot, and he gotupoutofthebushesandstartedwavingat thecamera,”saidGrantBaldwin,NorthShore Rescue’sfirstdroneoperator “Thesubjectwas quite hypothermic. It was getting to the point where if they had not been found, it would probablybearecoverythenextday.Sothatfelt amazingtofinallyseethatheatspot.”
The thermal camera picks up anything giving
offheat.Baldwincanusuallytellwhetherhe’s lookingatahumanorsomethingelse.
“Arabbitreallydoeslooklikearabbitrunning throughthewoods,”hejoked.
Theoperatorcantypeinamessage,whichthe drone will then broadcast via a loudspeaker, tellingasubjectstayput
In June 2024, another volunteer took only about 15 seconds to spot a man who’d gone missingdeepinLynnCanyon.
Baldwin became a resource member of North Shore Rescue after first spending a year following the team and filming them with drones for Search and Rescue: North Shore, the Knowledge Network documentary series hedirected.
Theleveloftrainingandcertificationrequired to operate a drone is significant, Baldwin said, and the thermal-mounted camera drone he uses for searches costs about $20,000. But the team clearly sees value in drones, training up eight members for certification. AndEmergencyManagementB.C.hasrecently given rescue teams some directions to follow whenusingthem.
Although the thermal camera makes a lost subject pop out of the landscape in vivid colour, NorthShoreRescueteamleader Scott Merriman sees an even greater need for them: Drones rush in where angels fear to tread. Specifically, the many cliffs, canyons, drainages and avalanche terrain where it would be dangerous sendvolunteersonfoot,Merrimansa “It’s really an important tool in our hesaid.“Attheendoftheday,it’skeepingour members safe and it’s the providing the best outcomeforthepublicthatwe’reheretohelp.”
“Putting a drone out there instead of flying a helicopter in poor conditions is a really smart move The drone is expendable,” Baldwin added.
But even as the tool makes the backcountry a bit safer, Baldwin stressed that rescuers need something to go on. That’s why it’s critical to let someone know where in the backcountry you’regoingandwhenyou’reexpectedback.
“Because if we don’t have a starting point, I
don’t have 1,000 batteries to fly up and down everydrainagetofigureoutwhereyouare,”he said.
And, he added, anyone lucky enough to be found by a North Shore Rescue drone is still going to have to wait for the boots on the groundtogetbackout.
“A drone can find someone, but it’s not going to pick them up and get them out. You still need the field team to do most of the work,” hesaid. ■
