2016
There and back An exploration of outdoor recreation incidents in New Zealand
Produced by the New Zealand Mountain Safety Council
Est.Est. 1965 1965
the New Zealand mountain Safety Council The New Zealand Mountain Safety Council (MSC) is a national organisation with a mandate to encourage safe participation in land-based outdoor activities. It does this through the development and promotion of safety messaging, by identifying and responding to insights provided by the ongoing collection and analysis of data, and by building partnerships with relevant organisations.
Safer places, safer activities, safer people. m IN g
INS
g
Igh
SA
tS
eS oRgANISAtIoNAl eXCelleNCe
PARtNeRINg
From the Chief executive welcome to the next phase of the mountain Safety council’s journey into understanding what’s going on in the New zealand outdoors. This document has been developed with the intention to present a clear picture of participation, and more importantly exactly what’s been going wrong. The data presented will likely challenge pre-concieved ideas or assumptions. our sector has the ability to use this knowledge to ensure we’re making decisions that are based on evidence. our intention is to use this data - and the insights that are developed from it - to implement targeted, evidence-based safety initiatives and safety messaging. i’d like to thank the various organisations that partnered with us to create this document - you’ll see their logos on the outside cover. Their support and patience has been invaluable. Thank you for helping to promote safety in the outdoors.
Mike daisley ceo New zealand mountain Safety council
2
Published by the New Zealand Mountain Safety Council, July 2016.
photo: Yap zhi Yuen
Contents Questions Methodology - synopsis a view from the top
4 5 6-7
what?
8-9
when?
10-15
where?
16-17
who?
18-23
Key insights
24-25
activities
26-119
Tramping
28-45
hunting
46-63
mountaineering
64-81
mountain Biking Trail running
82-99 100-117
summary - activities
118-119
hot spots
120-121
Auckland
122-131
central North island
132-141
mackenzie
142-151
Queenstown-Lakes
152-161
Southland
162-171
summary - hotspots
172-173
Methodolody - complete
176-178
Wrap up
179
Let’s get started. insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
3
neW Zealand Insights as is recoGnised a key part of as one of the what we do WoRlD’S leADINg outdoor adventure PlaYGrounds
• understand where people go and what activities they do. • know who is most likely to get into problems.
• identify the most hazardous places and activities. • Target our safety messages to the people who need it most. • Share our insights with our partners and others.
Stages of this story National view
Overview of all data from the selected activities across New Zealand.
Activities
A breakdown of the data separated into each of the 5 activities.
hotspots
Exploration of 5 key areas of New Zealand.
Questions we explored • what causes things to go wrong? • when do incidents occur? • where are the top locations for incidents to occur? • who are the people involved? • what key trends and insights come from this knowledge? • what has been going wrong?
4
photo: Yap zhi Yuen
methodology Activities
Data sources
outdoor recreation is a broad category with many different types of recreation activities available ‘out of doors’. however, only a selection of these are relevant to the New zealand mountain Safety council (mSc). in order to narrow in on the outdoor recreation activities relevant to the mSc’s prevention-focused mandate we chose 5 activities which have a high number of participants and/or have a high proportional number of safety incidents. There are other activities relevant to the mSc, and these will be explored in the future.
The data used to create the infographics within this publication can be grouped into 4 main categories:
5
aCtiVities We eXplored:
tramping
Any walk where the intention is to be more than an hour away from the nearest road. includes day walks, overnight tramping and great walks.
mountaineering
Technical climbing in alpine areas. usually will require technical equipment that would not be needed when tramping. includes summer and winter mountaineering.
hunting
All recreational hunting of any game. Does not include fishing and trapping.
mountain Biking
• injuries • Search and rescues • Fatalities • participation.
The table below represents the specific date ranges for each incident type. As each data source covers a different length of time it is important to keep this in mind when viewing the information presented in this publication.
data range start
data range end
dataset time-frame
injury
2/01/2004
30/12/2014
11 years
search
1/07/2010
27/06/2015
5 years
Fatality
1/07/2007
31/12/2014
7.5 years
each data set has been supplied to the mSc by a partner organisation. The data supplied to the mSc has been handled in accordance with strict confidentiality and privacy standards. No identifiable personal information is contained within this publication. on page 176 you will find further information including a breakdown of the datasets, how they’ve been acquired and the business rules we have created to ensure a consistent, repeatable methodology.
To help prevent incidents, we need to understand what’s been going on.
mountain biking in remote locations on tracks which are also used for tramping, or may be specifically built for remote mountain biking such as rides included in Nga haerenga, The New zealand cycle Trail.
trail Running
running on tracks which are also used for tramping or day walks.
Let’s begin with the big picture. insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
5
a view from the top We began by looking at all 5 activities combined to see what trends appeared in the data. As each data set was sourced from a different timespan, we calculated this into comparative averages such as daily, monthly and annual averages.
1,146,978 people partiCipatinG in the seleCted outdoor aCtiVities eVerY Year:
632,548 New Zealanders
514,430 International visitors
annual partiCipation per aCtiVitY
321,997 New Zealanders 447,366 International 166,675 New Zealanders 28,423 International 37,665 38,641 79,660 26,551 6
New Zealanders International
New Zealanders
total recorded incidents Injuries: 64,988
People involved in Search & Rescues: 2,697 (5 years) Fatalities: 100
New Zealanders
(11 years)
For data sources and range, please refer to the methodology section at the start of this document.
(7.5 years)
5,908 Injuries
540
People involved in Search & Rescues
13
Fatalities
each year there were on average
photo: Yap zhi Yuen
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
7
51%
what?
Falling
Identifying the cause of the incident shapes our understanding of contributing hazards.
14%
Firearms incident
4%
What caused the fatalities?
Falling object
2%
Fatalities are often caused by multiple contributing factors. Here we have identiďŹ ed the immediate cause of each fatality. 51% of all fatalities were caused by falling.
Fire
14%
River crossing
4% %
Avalanche
7%
hypothermia
*Body not recovered
4%* Unknown
how many were involved in a typical Search & Rescue? Most Search and Rescues were for a single person or to rescue a single person lost or injured from a multi-person trip.
72% one person
20% 5% two people
8
three people
2%
Four people
1%
Five or more people
whAT?
7% head
5% Shoulder
3%
4%
torso
Arm
9%
lower back/ spine
7%
hand, wrist and ďŹ ngers
7%
hip, upper leg, thigh
22% Knee
8.5%
18%
lower leg
7%
Ankle
What were the injuries?
Foot and toes
With such a large number of injuries we can clearly identify what injuries occur most frequently. By far the most common were soft tissue injuries such as strains, sprains and bruises. Injuries generally occurred on the lower half of the body, with 65% of all injuries being somewhere on the leg.
12%
laceration, puncture wound, sting
6% 1% 3% 78%
Fracture/dislocation
Unknown
other
Diagnosis
Soft tissue injury
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
9
when?
Studying incidents over time can help us discover the long term trends, particularly in relation to participation.
Annual incident trends There was a rise in injuries sustained in the outdoors that was greater than the rise in participation - either domestically or internationally. people involved in Search and rescues had declined slightly in the range of data analysed.
Participation trends when analysing when things go wrong, it’s important to look at participation in relation to incidents as there is often a correlation. Sport Nz’s two ‘Active Nz’ surveys (2007/8 & 2013/14) and the ministry of Business innovation and employment (mBie) ‘international Visitor Survey’ both show an increase in participation. however, injuries are growing at a higher rate than this participation growth. The cause of this difference in percentage increase is not clear. There may be contributing factors in a combination of riskier behaviour, better reporting of the injuries, and potential seasonal variations.
5,908 Injuries
NAtIoNAl ANNUAl AveRAge
540
People involved in Search & Rescues NAtIoNAl ANNUAl AveRAge
ANNUAl PARtICIPAtIoN tReNDS 2008
2014
2015
sportnZ
556,159
632,873
-
MBie
-
507,697
514,430
rePorted inJuries 207% (2004-11) nZ PoPulation 11% (2004-11) international visitors 22% (2004-11)
10
13
Fatalities NAtIoNAl ANNUAl AveRAge
wheN? 8106 7846 7369 6702
6686
2010
2011
6543
5890 3608
4313
5283
2642
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2012
2013
2014
584
582 545
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
496
490
2013-14
2014-15
20 15 14
13 11
10
12
5
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
(half year)
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
1111
Average incidents per month The number of incidents varies depending on the month of the year. December represents the most common month for fatalities with 23% occurring in a single month, while August and November only represent 4% each.
30% of all incidents occurred over the 3 months of summer
Seasonal trends Summer and early autumn are peak times, whereas winter and spring had far fewer incidents.
12
National monthly Average
492
Injuries
45
People involved in Search & Rescues
1.1
Fatalities
Search & Rescue
Fatality
JAN
12%
14%
10%
FeB
10%
10%
6%
mAR
11%
10%
7%
APR
12%
13%
9%
mAy
8%
5%
11%
JUN
6%
7%
6%
JUl
6%
7%
6%
AUg
5%
4%
4%
SeP
6%
5%
6%
oCt
8%
7%
8%
Nov
8%
7%
4%
DeC
8%
11%
23% insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
wheN?
Injury
1313
Average incidents in a week There were generally twice as many incidents per day on a weekend than there were on a weekday. A proportionally large number of fatalities occurred on a Monday.
incidents siGnificantlY increased on most PuBlic holidaYs
NAtIoNAl WeeKly AveRAge
114 10.4
Injuries
People involved in Search & Rescues
0.25
Fatalities
heading out on a holiday? public holidays represent an opportunity for people to get outdoors and we were interested to see what happened over these extended breaks. we looked at the whole holiday period which included the days surrounding the public holiday (e.g. easter was 4 days and waitangi weekend includes the weekend period either before or after the public holiday). we normalised this by dividing the total number by the number of days so we could compare with other holiday periods.
DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
15.2 1.4 Injuries
People involved in Search & Rescues (SAR)
easter weekend had the largest number of incidents with around 3 times more than a regular day. in contract the Christmas period did not have a significant difference in the number of injuries when compared to a regular day. Note: With so few fatalities on a public holiday it was not possible to accurately represent the data.
puBliC holidaY dailY aVeraGe oF people inJured or inVolVed in a searCh and resCue:
14
32 injuries 2.3 sar Waitangi weekend
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
11%
10%
11%
10%
10%
13%
12%
11%
12%
11%
21%
21%
21%
7%
10%
10%
12%
23%
17%
21 injuries 2.4 sar
SAt
SUN
26%
wheN?
moN
21%
27 injuries 3.0 sar
anZaC weekend
Queen’s Birthday weekend
16 injuries 2.4 sar Christmas - new Year period
41 injuries 4.5 sar easter weekend
32 injuries 3.0 sar labour weekend
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
15
where?
Knowing where things are going wrong helps understand if local conditions affect participants.
auckland 7607
Central north island* 3299
942
Queenstownlakes 3641
tasman
southland 2801
2504
Westland 1600
injuries
NAtIoNAl DIStRICt AveRAge
(11 years)
Mackenzie 612
39
people involved in search and rescues
NAtIoNAl DIStRICt AveRAge
Central north island* 410
tasman 166
auckland
Westland 145
68
Mackenzie 108
Queenstownlakes
southland 168
148
(5 years)
1.4
Mackenzie Central north island*
Fatalities
NAtIoNAl DIStRICt AveRAge
5
(7.5 years)
auckland 16
1
tasman 9
Westland 10
12
Queenstownlakes 15
southland 12
where?
Compared to NZ average
8.1x 1.7x 0.7x
Looking at all incidents across New zealand’s 67 districts some clearly stood out above the others
auckland
Auckland was the district with the highest incidence of injury with more than 8 times the national average. The central North island (Taupo and ruapehu Districts) had the highest number of people involved in Search and rescues with more than 10 times the national average. Queenstown-Lakes was the district with the highest number of fatalities with more than 10 times the national average.
3.5x 10.5x 3.5x
Central north island*
distriCts and hoW theY CoMpare to nZ aVeraGe:
2.7x 4.3x 6.2x tasman
1.7x 3.7x 6.9x
Westland
NAtIoNAl DIStRICt AveRAge
3.9x 3.8x 10.4xx
Injury
Queenstown-lakes
SAR
Fatality
0.6 0.6x 2.8x 8.3x
Mackenzie
3.0x 4.3x 8.3x
southland
71% of all fatalities Were in the south island * Central North Island is a combination of Ruapehu and Taupo districts. insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
1717
who?
gender Males were far more likely to die in the outdoors, females were more likely to be injured.
Understanding if gender has an impact can help us develop targeted interventions.
84% of all fatalities Were male
For eVerY 100,000 Male partiCipants in a Year:
male
482 54 1.6 Injured
Involved in a Search & Rescue
Fatality
For eVerY 100,000 FeMale partiCipants in a Year:
Female
571 36 0.5 Injured
Involved in a Search & Rescue
Fatality
18
on averaGe, Women Were inJured more than men
who?
Annual incidents Looking at the numbers side by side shows us how participation is split by gender, and also the total number of people who were injured, involved in Search and Rescues or killed each year.
male
11
Fatalities
370
People involved in Search & Rescues
3,314 Injuries
687,059
total participants
274,632
International visitors
412,427
New Zealanders
2
Female
Fatalities
166
People involved in Search & Rescues
2,594 Injuries
454,349 total participants
239,798
International visitors
214,552
New Zealanders N.B:. 0.5% of participants surveyed did not disclose their gender.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
19 19
ethnicity and nationality We were keen to explore the ethnicity and nationality of outdoor participants. This may help to break down preconceived ideas that some may hold around who was getting hurt, lost or killed in the outdoors. Unfortunately, each data source represented ethnicity categorisation differently. Despite this, we can still show that injuries and people involved in Search and Rescues overwhelmingly involve those of European (or Caucasian) descent. Add to this, 73% of fatalities were to New Zealanders, a much higher number than the percentage of those who venture into the outdoors each year.
New Zealand’s ethnicity breakdown* census 2013
7%
70%
Pacific Island Nations
1%
middle eastern/ latin American/ African
14% maori
european
11% Asian
**Not elsewhere included: Don’t know, refused to answer, response unidentifiable, response outside scope, and not stated. *multiple answers possible so will total more than 100.
20
5%
Not elsewhere included**
2% other
73% of fatalities Were neW Zealanders
who?
ethnicity of all injuries
83%
1%
5.5%
5% other
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
maori
3.5%
european
2%
Unknown
Asian
ethnicity of all people involved in a Search & Rescue
0.5%
4%
3% other
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
maori
79% european
5%
8.5%
Asian
Unknown
Nationality of all fatalities
1%
5%
5%
Israeli
german
european other
73% New Zealander
11% Australian
5% Asian
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
21
Participation
Age
75+
-
Age groups A closer look at the age of each person gives further insight into who’s getting into trouble. when compared against the participation levels of certain age groups this shows which age groups are over or under represented.
35-49 Year olds Were less liKelY to Be involved in a search & rescue 16-24 Year olds Were less liKelY to Be inJured
65-74
50-64
21%
35-49
32%
25-34
21%
16-24
21%
≤15
22
5%
-
who?
NAtIoNAl totAl INCIDeNtS
64,988 Injuries
2,696
People involved in Search & Rescues
1%
2%
6%
6%
23%
20%
100
Fatalities
2%
3%
27% JUN
30%
20%
28%
18%
23%
22%
15%
23%
18%
6%
7%
0%
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
23 23
key insights
Analysing this data has allowed us to uncover some key trends and insights. 47% of all incidents occurred on the WeeKend
51% of fatalities Were caused BY the Person fallinG
71% of all fatalities Were in the south island
onlY 28% of search and rescues Were for tWo or more PeoPle
62% of all inJuries Were sustained someWhere on the leG
2424
on averaGe Women Were inJured more freQuentlY than men
keY iNSighTS For every 194 participants, 1 was injured. For every 2,124 participants, 1 was involved in a Search and rescue event. For every 86,023 participants, 1 never made it home.
inJuries aPPear to Be increasinG faster than GroWth in ParticiPation
photo: Yap zhi Yuen
the central north island had 10 times the averaGe numBer of PeoPle involved in search and rescues
30% of all incidents occurred over the 3 summer months
84% of all fatalities Were male
the numBer of inJuries and PeoPle involved in search and rescues siGnificantlY increased on PuBlic holidaYs
comPared to other aGes, 35 to 49 Year olds Were less liKelY to Be involved in a search and rescue
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
25
activities In ‘A view from the top’ we combined the 5 activities to get a picture of what is going on the outdoors. Now we start to dive into each of the 5 activities and explore what, when, where and whom.
1,146,978 people partiCipatinG in the seleCted outdoor aCtiVities eVerY Year
tramPinG maKes uP 67% of ParticiPation in the 5 activities selected
2626
pArTicipATioN
26,551 New Zealanders
76,306 37,665
New Zealanders
38,641
International
79,660 New Zealanders
195,098 166,675
New Zealanders
28,423
International
769,363 321,997
New Zealanders
447,366
International
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
27
tramping Tramping has by far the largest number of participants in the 5 activities we’re focused on in this publication. Trampers make up 67% of participation across the 5 activities we explored. Tramping also attracts many international visitors with close to half a million tourists exploring the tracks and mountains of New Zealand.
While there are more international people who tramp in New Zealand per annum, compared to New Zealanders, the frequency of how often they go and how long they spend tramping is very different. We estimate New Zealanders spend more time tramping and go on many more tramping trips per year.
769,363 traMpers partiCipate per Year
321,997 New Zealanders
447,366 International visitors
total recorded incidents Injuries: 34,611
2828
(11 years)
oF all 5 aCtiVities, traMpinG represents:
53%
People involved in Search & Rescues: 1,688 (5 years)
63%
Fatalities: 45
45%
(7.5 years)
TrAmpiNg
We estimate neW Zealanders Go on uP to 6 tImeS more triPs Per Year than international visitors
3,146
Injuries
338
People involved in Search & Rescues
6
Fatalities
each year there were on average
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
29
what? What caused the fatalities?
Falls were the main cause of tramping fatalities, with river crossings second on the list. * Body not recovered
53% Falling
18%
River crossing
9% 9%* 7% 4%
hypothermia
Unknown
Falling object
Fire
how many were involved in a typical Search & Rescue? Most Search and Rescues were for a solo tramper or to rescue a single person lost or injured from a multi-person trip.
72% one person
19% 5% two people
3030
three people
2%
Four people
1% %
Five or more people
TrAmpiNg
6% head
4% 3% Shoulder
2% 9%
torso
6%
Arm
hand, wrist and ďŹ ngers
Back/spine
6%
hip, upper leg and thigh
25% Knee
6%
21%
lower leg
8%
Ankle
What were the injuries?
Foot and toes
46% of all tramping injuries were to the knees and ankles. Injuries to feet, toes and along the back/spine were also prevalent.
11%
laceration, puncture wound, sting
6% 1% 3%
Fracture/dislocation
Unknown
other
Diagnosis
78%
Soft tissue injury
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
31
51% of tramPinG inJuries Were durinG the first 4 months of the Year
when?
Seasonal inuences are a potential factor impacting when incidents are occurring in New zealand. There has been a steady rise in injuries, while people involved in Search and rescues, and fatalities have been on a gradual decline. international and domestic participation numbers are also increasing, but not at the same rate as injuries. December and January are the months with the most incidents occurring. December is particularly poor as 31% of tramping fatalities occurred during the month.
4131 3894 3691
3,146
3502
3415
3546
3287
Injuries
tRAmPINg ANNUAl AveRAge
2143
2517
2908
1577
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
338
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
367
363 347
People involved in Search & Rescues tRAmPINg ANNUAl AveRAge
323
288
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 10
6
9
7
Fatalities tRAmPINg ANNUAl AveRAge
6 5 4 2
2
2007 32
(half year)
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
262
28
0.5
Injuries
People involved in Search & Rescues
Fatalities
JAN
14%
16%
16%
FeB
12%
11%
11%
mAR
13%
12%
4%
APR
12%
10%
0%
mAy
6%
5%
12% 11%
JUN
5%
5%
2%
JUl
4%
6%
AUg
4%
4%
SeP
5%
5%
oCt
8%
6%
7%
Nov
8%
7%
4%
DeC
9%
13%
FeB
TrAmpiNg
tRAmPINg moNthly AveRAge
9%
JUN
2%
2%
31% insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
33
tRAmPINg WeeKly AveRAge
61 6.5 0.12
Weekly tramping incidents
Injuries
With participation likely being higher during weekends, it’s not surprising to see higher levels of injuries and people involved in Search and Rescues over that time.
People involved in Search & Rescues
Fatalities
moN
3434
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
SAt
SUN
23%
21%
11%
10%
12%
11%
11%
12%
13%
11%
12%
12%
19%
20%
18%
11%
11%
11%
13%
24%
11%
TrAmpiNg
Public holidays For many trampers Labour weekend signals the start of tramping season. Easter weekend is traditionally a final chance to get out before winter truly sets in. Note: There were so few fatalities on a public holiday it’s not possible to accurately represent the data.
26 21
19
tRAmPINg DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
12
12
11
7.8 Injuries
2.0 1.9 1.4
1.3
anZaC weekend
Queen’s Birthday weekend
1.8
1.4
0.9 Christmas new Year period
labour weekend
easter weekend
Waitangi weekend
People involved in Search & Rescues
incidents occur more freQuentlY toWards the end of summer/ autumn Period insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
35
where?
tramping districts
Tramping is an activity that occurs throughout the country, but has several locations of traditionally higher participation. The highest rates of injury were in Auckland, the highest numbers of people involved in Search and Rescues were in the Central North Island and the highest numbers of fatalities were shared between the districts of Tasman and Queenstown-Lakes.
auckland
502
4100
Central north island* 2076
Queenstownlakes 2458
tasman 1372
injuries
southland 1846
Westland 1057
tRAmPINg DIStRICt AveRAge
(11 years)
Mackenzie 342
24
people involved in search and rescues
Central north island* 257
tasman 125
auckland
Westland 90
49
Mackenzie 55
Queenstownlakes
southland 112
107
tRAmPINg DIStRICt AveRAge
(5 years)
0.67
8
tRAmPINg DIStRICt AveRAge
36
Westland 6
Fatalities
(7.5 years)
Queenstownlakes
tasman
8
Mackenzie 2
auckland Central north 0 island* 0
southland 6
TrAmpiNg
these hotspots show which districts have a higher/lower than average representation:
8.2xx 2.0xx 0.0xx
To get an idea of how a particular regions compared to each other, we calculated the national average and we represented this average as 1.0. As an example, you can see that Auckland has double the national average (2.0x) of people involved in Search and Rescues.
auckland
4.1x 10.5x 0.0x
Central north island*
2.7x 5.1x 12.3x tasman
2.1x 3.7x 9.2x
4.9x 4.4x 12.3x
Westland
tRAmPINg DIStRICt AveRAge Injury
Queenstown-lakes
SAR
Fatality
0.7 0.7x 2.2x 3.1x
Mackenzie
3.7 3.7x 4.6x 4.6 9.2x
southland
* Central North Island is a combination of Ruapehu and Taupo districts.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
37 37
who?
tramping gender gender can often play a role in how participants are represented in statistical data. in relation to tramping, males were more likely to be involved in a Search and rescue or fatally injured. Females were more likely to be injured.
For eVerY 100,000 Male traMpers in a Year:
male
333 48 1.1 Injured
Involved in Search & Rescues
Fatality
For eVerY 100,000 FeMale traMpers in a Year:
Female
496 38 0.4 Injured
Involved in Search & Rescues
Fatality
38
men Were more often involved in a search and rescue oPeration or Killed
TrAmpiNg
Annual incidents Participation in tramping is reasonably balanced across genders both domestically and internationally.
male
4.3
1.6 Female
199
138
Fatalities
People involved in Search & Rescues
1,368 Injuries
411,026
total participants
232,630
International visitors
178,396
New Zealanders
Fatalities
People involved in Search & Rescues
1,779 Injuries
358,337 total participants
214,736
International visitors
143,601
New Zealanders N.B:. 0.5% of participants surveyed did not disclose their gender.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
39 39
ethnicity and nationality By exploring the ethnicity and nationality of outdoor participants, we are able to challenge common assumptions regarding who is getting hurt, lost or killed in the outdoors. Each data source represented ethnicity categorisation slightly differently, and we’ve remained true to their deďŹ nitions of demographic categorisation.
ethnicity of New Zealand trampers
6% maori
75% NZ european
15% other
5% Asian
more neW Zealanders Were Killed tramPinG than international visitors 40
TrAmpiNg
ethnicity of tramping injuries
6%
1%
3%
european
other
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
maori
84%
3%
3%
Asian
Unknown
ethnicity of trampers involved in Search & Rescues
2%
0.5%
4%
maori
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
other
78% european
7%
9%
Asian
Unknown
Nationality of tramping fatalities
4.4%
7%
european other
german
2.2% other
67% New Zealander
11% Australian
6.7% Asian
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
41
Age groups
Participation
we also looked at the demographic breakdown of ages of people who got into trouble and compared this with participation. 50-64 year olds were the most likely to be involved in a fatal incident, while 16-24 year olds were more likely to be involved in a Search and rescue.
75+
25-34 Year olds Were siGnificantlY underrePresented in inJuries 50-64 Year olds Were overrePresented in fatalities 16-24 Year olds Were most liKelY to Be searched for
42
-
65-74
8%
50-64
23%
35-49
25.5%
25-34
24%
16-24
19.5%
≤15
-
34,611 Injuries
1,688
People involved in Search & Rescues
45
TrAmpiNg
tRAmPINg totAl INCIDeNtS
Fatalities
2%
2%
2%
9%
7%
4%
28%
20%
31% JUN
23%
17%
27%
15%
22%
16%
15%
25%
20%
7%
7%
0%
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
43
key insights
44
49% of tramPers involved in search & rescues occurred in the first 4 months of the Year
on averaGe, Women Were inJured more freQuentlY than men
inJuries and fatalities Were more liKelY to occur to older tramPers, esPeciallY those aGed 50-64
australians rePresented the Greatest numBer of foreiGn fatalities, But Were also the larGest GrouP of international visitors to nZ
When comPared to total ParticiPation, YounGer tramPers Were more liKelY to Be involved in search and rescues
80% of tramPinG fatalities occurred in the south island
tramping
For every 1 tramping fatality
57
trampers were involved in Search and Rescues
531
were injured.
Insights developed by the New Zealand Mountain Safety Council - 2016
45
hunting
Hunting is a common and popular activity in New Zealand with a growing rate of participation. Over 85% of hunters are New Zealanders. Hunting had fewer fatalities per year than tramping, however hunting had a quarter of the total number of participants in the 5 activities we looked at.
195,098 hunters partiCipate per Year
166,675 New Zealanders
28,423
International visitors
total recorded incidents Injuries: 11,149
4646
(11 years)
oF all 5 aCtiVities, huntinG represents:
17%
People involved in Search & Rescues: 586 (5 years)
22%
Fatalities: 31
31%
(7.5 years)
huNTiNg
hunters had the second hiGhest fatalitY rate across the 5 activities, Behind mountaineerinG
1,104 Injuries
117
People involved in Search & Rescues
4
Fatalities
each year there were on average
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
47
54% of fatalities did not involve a firearm
what? What caused the fatalities? A high number of hunting fatalities were from falling. Firearms collectively were attributable to 45% of fatalities, with ‘misidentified target’ being the leading firearms-related cause. River crossings caused 19% of hunting fatalities. Non firearms-related causes were responsible for over 54% of all hunting fatalities.
32% Falling
23%
Shot (misidentified target)
19%
River crossing
16% Shot (self)
6%
Shot (non-intentional accident)
3%
Avalanche
how many were involved in a typical Search & Rescue? Most Search and Rescues were for a solo hunter, or to rescue a single person lost or injured person from a multi-person trip.
67% one person
22% two people
4848
7% %
three people
3%
Four people
1% %
Five or more people
huNTiNg
14% head
7% Shoulder
4%
10%
torso
Arm
13%
11%
hand, wrist and ďŹ ngers
Back/spine
3%
16%
hip, upper leg and thigh
Knee
6%
lower leg
9%
3%
Ankle
What were the injuries?
Foot and toes
85% of all ear injuries across the 5 activities were to hunters. Hand, ďŹ nger and thumb injuries were also double the average compared to the other activities.
25%
laceration, puncture wound, sting
7% Diagnosis
Fracture/dislocation
1% 9% 58% Unknown
other
Soft tissue injury insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
49
when?
hunting injury claims are climbing steadily. international and domestic participation numbers are also climbing, but not at the same rate compared with other activities. with an average of 4 fatalities every year, hunting is prone to ‘bad years’ and very ‘good’ years. The number of people involved in a Search and rescue event has remained relatively stable in the data range we analysed.
68% of fatalities Were durinG one of the PeaK huntinG seasons 1311
1308
1234 1215 1182
1,014
1115
Injuries
hUNtINg ANNUAl AveRAge
669
736
2005
2006
837
982
560
2004
2007
2008
2009
117
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
126
126 122
People involved in Search & Rescues hUNtINg ANNUAl AveRAge
115
97
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15
7
4
5
5
Fatalities hUNtINg ANNUAl AveRAge
4
4
4
1
2007 50
(half year)
1
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
Fatalities
JAN
6%
7%
10%
FeB
6%
6%
3%
mAR
8%
6%
10%
APR
15%
23% FeB
23%
mAy
12%
7%
19%
JUN
10%
10%
16%
JUl
8%
9%
6%
AUg
7%
4%
0%
SeP
6%
6%
3%
oCt
8%
8%
6%
Nov
7%
7%
0%
DeC
6%
7%
12%
the roar
Injuries
hUNtINg moNthly AveRAge
huNTiNg
0.3
duCK shootinG
10
People involved in Search & Rescues
Mountain huntinG (tahr, ChaMois)
85
3%
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
51
hUNtINg WeeKly AveRAge
20 2.3 0.08
Weekly hunting incidents
Injuries
Hunting traditionally has a high proportion of weekend participation. There appears to be a strong correlation between weekend participation and the number of injuries, people involved in Search and Rescues and fatalities during the weekend.
People involved in Search & Rescues
Fatalities
moN
52 52
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
SAt
SUN
9%
7%
8%
8%
11%
33%
24%
17%
9%
8%
7%
11%
27%
21%
16%
3%
7%
7%
13%
26%
29%
huNTiNg
Public holidays Similar to weekly hunting incidents, we see a corresponding rise in incidents over key holiday periods. Note: There were so few fatalities on a public holiday it’s not possible to accurately represent the data.
8.3 7.7
hUNtINg DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
5.1 4.3
3.5
2.7 Injuries
1.5
1.7 1.1 0.7
0.3
0.7 0.4
0.3
Christmas new Year period
labour weekend
Queen’s Birthday weekend
anZaC weekend
easter weekend
Waitangi weekend
People involved in Search & Rescues
easter and Queen’s BirthdaY WeeKends resulted in siGnificant increases in huntinG incidents insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
53
where?
hunting districts
The central North island had the highest concentration of all types of incidents, and was by far the leading area for hunting fatalities – nearly 9 times the national average. Southland is the stand-out region in the South island with 4 times the number of people involved in Search and rescues, and over 6 times the national average of fatalities.
162
auckland 383
Central north island* 693
tasman 312
injuries
Queenstownlakes
Westland 204
hUNtINg DIStRICt AveRAge
southland 523
233
(11 years)
Mackenzie 103
8.5
people involved in search and rescues hUNtINg DIStRICt AveRAge
Central north island* 67
tasman 27
auckland
Westland 25
southland 34
Mackenzie 16
12
Queenstownlakes
(5 years)
8
0.45
Central north island*
(7.5 years)
auckland 1
Queenstownlakes
3
4
Fatalities
hUNtINg DIStRICt AveRAge
Westland
2
tasman 1
Mackenzie 0
54
southland 3
huNTiNg
these hotspots show which districts have a higher/lower than average representation:
2.4x 1.4x 2.2x
To get an idea of how a particular regions compared to each other, we calculated the national average and we represented this average as 1.0. As an example, you can see that Southland has 4 times the national average (4.0x) of people involved in Search and Rescues.
auckland
4.3x 7.9x 8.9x
Central north island*
1.9x 3.2x 2.2x tasman
1.3x 2.9x 6.7x
1.4x 0.9x 4.5x
hUNtINg DIStRICt AveRAge
Westland
Injury
SAR
Fatality
Queenstown-lakes
0.6 0.6x 1.9x 0.0x
Mackenzie
3.2 3.2x 4.0x 4.0 6.7x 6.7
southland * Central North Island is a combination of Ruapehu and Taupo districts.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
55 55
who? who?
hunting gender
Although there is a rising percentage of female hunters, it’s clear that the predominant gender of hunters is male. it is important to note that the data set for hunting incidents includes the demographic information of those who fell victim to a misidentified target incident and were not necessarily hunting themselves at the time of the incident. This will be explored in greater detail in a future huntingspecific publication.
For eVerY 100,000 Male hunters in a Year:
male
562 65 2.3 Injured
Involved in Search & Rescues
Fatality
For eVerY 100,000 FeMale hunters in a Year:
Female
286 27 0.7 Injured
Involved in Search & Rescues
Fatality
56
female hunters Were half as liKelY to Get inJured
huNTiNg
Annual incidents There is a clear correlation between high participation of males, and their incident numbers.
male
4
0.1 Female
Fatalities
Fatalities
111
5
959
55
People involved in Search & Rescues
People involved in Search & Rescues
Injuries
Injuries
19,188
170,571
total participants
20,749
International visitors
149,822
New Zealanders
total participants
7,674
International visitors
11,514
New Zealanders N.B:. 0.5% of participants surveyed did not disclose their gender.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
57 57
ethnicity and nationality By exploring the ethnicity and nationality of outdoor participants we are able to challenge common assumptions regarding who is getting injured, involved in a Search and Rescue or killed in the outdoors. Each data source represented ethnicity categorisation slightly differently and we’ve remained true to this deďŹ nition.
ethnicity of New Zealand hunters
86% NZ european
14% maori
the maJoritY of huntinG incidents involved neW Zealand hunters 58
huNTiNg
ethnicity of hunting injuries
1%
3%
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
80% european
other
2%
14%
Unknown
maori
ethnicity of hunters involved in a Search & Rescue
1%
1%
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
other
79% european
13% maori
6%
Unknown
Nationality of hunting fatalities
3% european
97% New Zealander
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
59
Age groups
Participation
we also looked at the demographic breakdown of ages of people who got into trouble and compared this with participation.
75+
50-64 Year olds Were overrePresented in fatalities
65-74
50-64
35-49 Year olds Were siGnificantlY underrePresented in search & rescues and fatalities
5%
23%
35-49
33%
25-34
19%
16-24
20%
≤15
60
-
-
11,149 Injuries
1%
586
31
People involved in Search & Rescues
Fatalities
2%
3%
huNTiNg
hUNtINg totAl INCIDeNtS
3% 4%
4%
21%
22%
32% JUN
32%
4% 24%
19%
20%
23%
23%
18%
22%
19%
4%
7%
0%
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
61
key insights firearms Were not the most common cause of huntinG fatalities
the central north island had nearlY 9 times more fatalities comPared to the national district averaGe
23% of huntinG fatalities Were the result of another hunter misidentifYinG their tarGet
62
search and rescues decreased as hunters move from the BacKcountrY to the maimai for ducK shootinG
comPared to ParticiPation, 3549 and 50-64 Year old hunters shoW a siGnificant difference in incident rates
hunters Were tWice as liKelY to need treatment for a laceration than anY of the other 5 activities
hunting
For every 1 hunting fatality
29 248
hunters were involved in Search and Rescues
were injured.
Insights developed by the New Zealand Mountain Safety Council - 2016
63
mountaineering Compared with participation and our other activities, mountaineering has a high ratio of incidents. Just a little over 1 in every 700 are involved in a Search and Rescue. Mountaineering is responsible for almost a quarter of all outdoor-related fatalities.
26,551 neW Zealand Mountaineers partiCipate per Year
total recorded incidents Injuries: 702
(11 years)
People involved in Search & Rescues: 187 (5 years) Fatalities: 24
64
(7.5 years)
oF all 5 aCtiVities, MountaineerinG represents:
1% 7% 24%
mouNTAiNeeriNg
64
Injuries
37
People involved in Search & Rescues
3.2
Fatalities
each year there were on average
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
65
what? What caused the fatalities?
Given that mountaineering typically involves climbing and heights, it’s unsurprising that falling is the leading cause of fatalities.
71% Falling
12.5% 12.5% 4% hypothermia
Avalanche
Falling object
how many were involved in a typical Search & Rescue? Most Search and Rescues were for a solo mountaineer or to rescue a single person lost or injured from a multi-person trip.
61% one person
27% 11% 2% two people
6666
three people
Four people
Neck/head
7%
mouNTAiNeeriNg
11% Shoulder
4%
6%
torso
Arm
12%
6%
hand, wrist and ďŹ ngers
Back/spine
4%
hip, upper leg and thigh
16% Knee
7%
lower leg
12%
7%
Ankle
Foot and toes
What were the injuries? Mountaineers had the highest proportion of injuries on the ďŹ nger and thumb compared to the other activities. Knee injuries were also a high proportion at 16%, although as a comparison were not as high as tramping at 25%. Back/ spine injuries were far less prevalent than other activities.
14%
laceration, puncture wound, sting
11%
Fracture/dislocation
1% Unknown
Diagnosis
9% other
65%
Soft tissue injury
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
67
a third of mountaineerinG fatalities occurred in decemBer
when?
winter months are traditionally ‘off season’ for mountaineering. incidents are likely to correlate to higher participation in summer and autumn. With comparatively low numbers of participation, it is difficult to show a clear trend in Search and rescues or injuries. mountaineering is subject to ‘good’ years, as well as ‘bad years’, and a single fatality can have a big effect on the final numbers - fatalities per annum have ranged from 0 to 6 for example.
64
71
78
73
73 66
moUNtAINeeRINg ANNUAl AveRAge
47
2004
2005
2006
2007
65
63
Injuries
52
53
2008
2009
61
2010
37
2011
2012
moUNtAINeeRINg ANNUAl AveRAge
2014
43
41
People involved in Search & Rescues
2013
42
34
27
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 6
3
5
5 4
Fatalities moUNtAINeeRINg ANNUAl AveRAge
2
1
2007 68
(half year)
2008
2009
2010
1
0
2011
2012
2013
2014
3
0.3
moUNtAINeeRINg moNthly AveRAge
Injuries
People involved in Search & Rescues
JAN
13%
11%
0%
FeB
9%
12%
0%
mAR
12%
9%
8%
APR
9%
9%
8%
mAy
5%
0%
0%
JUN
5%
6%
0%
JUl
8%
13%
0%
AUg
8%
12%
13%
SeP
7%
3%
17%
oCt
8%
10%
13%
Nov
8%
7%
8%
DeC
8%
9%
33%
FeB
Fatalities
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
mouNTAiNeeriNg
5
69
moUNtAINeeRINg WeeKly AveRAge
1 0.7 0.06
Weekly mountaineering incidents
Injuries
Although fatalities were more common on Monday, there is a possibility that some of those incidents began on the weekend and the closest likely date of fatality was recorded as a Monday.
People involved in Search & Rescues
Fatalities
7070
moN
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
SAt
11%
12%
12%
11%
10%
22%
21%
23%
6%
11%
18%
18%
8%
17%
33%
4%
13%
13%
8%
17%
SUN
13%
mouNTAiNeeriNg
Public holidays There was a rise in incidents over popular holidays. waitangi and easter weekends were both twice the average for injuries. Note: There were so few fatalities on a public holiday it’s not possible to accurately represent the data.
moUNtAINeeRINg DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
0.4
0.4 0.3
0.2
0.2
0.2
Injuries
0.1
0.3
0.1
0.1
0.3
0.2
0.1
0.1
Christmas new Year period
labour weekend
Queen’s Birthday weekend
anZaC weekend
easter weekend
Waitangi weekend
People involved in Search & Rescues
search & rescues Were nearlY as common on a WednesdaY and thursdaY as a WeeKend insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
71
where?
mountaineering districts
The Mackenzie region has been the location for a great number of fatalities in New Zealand’s mountains. Mackenzie district had the highest number of people involved in Search and Rescues and fatalities, while the highest number of mountaineering injuries occurred in Westland.
taranaki
Westland
92
10
154
Central north island*
Queenstownlakes
86
75
Mackenzie 49
injuries
moUNtAINeeRINg DIStRICt AveRAge
tasman
(11 years)
13
southland 14
selwyn 10
8.5
Mackenzie
Central north taranaki 19 island*
Westland
33
24
24
Queenstownsouthland lakes 18
16
people involved in search and rescues moUNtAINeeRINg DIStRICt AveRAge
selwyn
(5 years)
9
tasman
0.35 Fatalities
moUNtAINeeRINg DIStRICt AveRAge
(7.5 years)
72
3
Mackenzie Central north island*
taranaki
selwyn
2
2
10
Westland 1
1
tasman 0
Queenstownlakes southland 5
3
mouNTAiNeeriNg
these hotspots show which districts have a higher/lower than average representation: To get an idea of how a particular regions compared to each other, we calculated the national average and we represented this average as 1.0. As an example, you can see that Taranaki has 9 times the national average (9.0x) of injuries.
8.5 8.5x 8.9x 8.9 2.9x
1.3x 1.1x 0.0x
15.1x 8.9x 1.4x
9.0x 7.0x 5.8x
Central north island*
taranaki
tasman
Westland
1.0x 3.3x 2.8x
7.4x 7.4x 6.6 6.6x 14.4 14.4x
selwyn
moUNtAINeeRINg DIStRICt AveRAge
Queenstown-lakes Injury
1.4x 5.9x 8.6x
southland
4.8xx 12.2xx 28.8x
Mackenzie
SAR
Fatality
* Central North Island is a combination of Ruapehu and Taupo districts.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
73 73
who?
mountaineering gender
compared with other activities, there is a far higher chance of being involved in an incident when mountaineering.
For eVerY 100,000 Male nZ Mountaineers in a Year:
male
215 146 14.5 Injured
Involved in Search & Rescues
Fatality
For eVerY 100,000 FeMale nZ Mountaineers in a Year:
Female
308 118 5.5 Injured
Involved in Search & Rescues
Fatality
74
mouNTAiNeeriNg
Annual incidents As we’ve seen with other activities, males are more likely to be involved in a Search and Rescue or killed.
male
2.8
0.4
28
9
41
22
Fatalities
People involved in Search & Rescues
Injuries
19,270 New Zealanders
Fatalities
Female
People involved in Search & Rescues
Injuries
7,281
New Zealanders
N.B:. 0.5% of participants surveyed insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016 did not disclose their gender.
75 75
ethnicity and nationality Mountaineering is predominantly a European pastime. Although we do not have ďŹ rm numbers of international participation, when looking at fatalities we clearly see that almost half of all fatalities involved a non-New Zealander. Each data source represented ethnicity categorisation slightly differently, and we’ve remained true to their deďŹ nitions of demographic categorisation.
a Quarter of mountaineerinG fatalities involved australians 76
79%
mouNTAiNeeriNg
ethnicity of mountaineering injuries
european
4%
12%
Asian
other
4%
1%
Unknown
maori
ethnicity of mountaineers involved in a Search & Rescue
3%
2%
maori
83%
Asian
european
3%
10%
other
Unknown
Nationality of mountaineering fatalities
4%
Swedish
4%
54%
12%
Canadian
european - other
New Zealander
25%
Australian
4%
Japanese
8.3% german
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
77
Age groups As opposed to other activities, older climbers do not have a higher rate of incident. it is those aged 2534 that are more likely to be injured or involved in a Search and rescue. 35-49 year olds make up the highest number of fatalities with 42% all mountaineering fatalities being in this age bracket.
almost half of all fatalities involved 35-49 Year olds 50-64 Year olds Were underrePresented across all incident tYPes
Participation
75+
3% 65-74
50-64
21%
35-49
32%
25-34
23%
16-24
23%
≤15
78
-
-
702 Injuries
0%
4%
18%
187
24
People involved in Search & Rescues
Fatalities
0%
0%
2%
0%
14%
13%
mouNTAiNeeriNg
moUNtAINeeRINg totAl INCIDeNtS
JUN
26%
31%
42%
29%
31%
33%
21%
17%
13%
5%
0%
2%
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
79
key insights
80
a third of all mountaineerinG fatalities occurred in decemBer
onlY 12.5% of mountaineerinG fatalities involved avalanches
Westland district had 15 times the national averaGe for inJuries, nearlY douBle the neXt hiGhest district.
there Were more mountaineers involved in a search and rescue on a WeeKdaY than a WeeKend
unliKe tramPinG, 50-64 Year old mountaineers Were under-rePresented across all incident tYPes
a third of all mountaineerinG fatalities Were on a mondaY
Mountaineering
For every 1 mountaineering fatality
12 20
mountaineers were involved in Search and Rescues
were injured.
Insights developed by the New Zealand Mountain Safety Council - 2016
81
mountain biking With mountain biking and cycle trail riding growing in popularity throughout New Zealand, we decided to include this activity as a starting point for reviewing over time. It has a high rate of injury but a low rate of Search and Rescues in comparison to traditional activities such as tramping, hunting and mountaineering. There were no mountain biking fatalities during the 7.5 years we examined.
76,306 Mountain BiKers partiCipate per Year
37,665 New Zealanders
38,641
International visitors
total recorded incidents Injuries: 4,182
(11 years)
People involved in Search (5 years) & Rescues: 171
8282
oF all 5 aCtiVities, Mountain BiKinG represents:
6% 6%
photo: Jay French
mouNTAiN BikiNg
380
Injuries
34
People involved in Search & Rescues
each year there were on average
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
83
what?
how many mountain bikers in a typical Search & Rescue? A considerably high number of Search and Rescues (28%) were to recover someone with a severe injury requiring hospitalisation. Most Search and Rescues were for a solo biker or to rescue a single person from a multi-person group.
84% one person
12% two people
8484
2%
three people
1%
Four people
1% %
Five or more people
15%
head
Shoulder
10%
8%
10%
10%
Upper back/spine
mouNTAiN BikiNg
17%
torso
Arm
hand, wrist and ďŹ ngers
5%
11%
hip, upper leg, thigh
Knee
4%
4%
Ankle
lower leg
1%
Foot and toes
What were the injuries? 71% of all injuries sustained by mountain bikers were to the upper body. This includes the highest percentage (17%) of injuries to the head.
15%
laceration, puncture wound, sting
13%
Fracture/dislocation
Diagnosis
0.6% 2% 64% Unknown
other
Soft tissue injury
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
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when?
mountain biking injuries are trending upwards at a steady rate. in 2006, mountain biking injuries made up just over 3% of all outdoor recreation injury claims across the 5 activities. in 2014, this was more than 9%. Anecdotally, we are also aware of an increase in participation and development of cycle trails, with significant local and central government investment. The number of people involved in Search and rescues remains steady. Summer was the season for injury (1 in 3 occurred then). January alone had 22% of all people involved in Search and rescues.
728 702
600 449
380
409 388
388
2009
2010
Injuries
moUNtAIN BIKINg ANNUAl AveRAge
374 138
1
5
2004
2005
34
2006
2007
2008
2011
36
2012
2013
2014
35
35
People involved in Search & Rescues moUNtAIN BIKINg ANNUAl AveRAge
33
32
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15
86
moUNtAIN BIKINg moNthly AveRAge
Injuries
3
People involved in Search & Rescues
JAN
13%
22%
FeB
10%
12%
mAR
13%
9%
APR
11%
13% FeB
mAy
6%
7%
JUN
5%
7%
JUl
4%
AUg
4%
SeP
6%
oCt
8%
5%
Nov
9%
6%
DeC
10%
10%
mouNTAiN BikiNg
32
3%
3%
2%
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
87
moUNtAIN BIKINg WeeKly AveRAge
7 0.7
Weekly mountain biking incidents
Injuries
Over half of the reported mountain biking injuries occurred during the weekend. There was also a high occurrence of people involved in a Search and Rescue during the weekend.
8888
People involved in Search & Rescues
moN
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
SAt
9%
9%
10%
9%
9%
30%
13%
14%
5%
16%
9%
25%
SUN
24%
18%
mouNTAiN BikiNg
Public holidays Injuries on public holidays reflect about the same increase as for weekends. people involved in Search and rescues increase close to 4 times on easter and Queens Birthday weekends.
moUNtAIN BIKINg DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
2.3
2.4 2.0
1.7 1.4
1.4
0.9 Injuries
0.4
0.4
0.2
0.2
0.1
0.1
0.1
Christmas new Year period
labour weekend
Queen’s Birthday weekend
anZaC weekend
easter weekend
Waitangi weekend
People involved in Search & Rescues
search & rescue events Were 4 tImeS hiGher on easter and Queen’s BirthdaY WeeKends insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
89
where?
mountain biking districts
Tasman district stands out as having the highest number of injuries, followed by Hurunui. The Central North Island had the highest number of people involved in Search and Rescues.
tasman 656
63
hurunui
Central north island*
214
Westland
188
injuries
southland
318
109
moUNtAIN BIKINg DIStRICt AveRAge
Mackenzie 89
(11 years)
auckland rotorua
Queenstownlakes
38
80
0
Central north island*
2.5
rotorua 9
Queenstownlakes
10
8
moUNtAIN BIKINg DIStRICt AveRAge
9
Westland Mackenzie 4
auckland 2
9090
tasman hurunui
people involved in search and rescues
(5 years)
47
4
southland 4
mouNTAiN BikiNg
0.0x 0.8x
auckland
these hotspots show which districts have a higher/lower than average representation: To get an idea of how a particular regions compared to each other, we calculated the national average and we represented this average as 1.0. As an example, you can see that Tasman has 4 times the national average (4.0x) of people involved in Search and Rescues.
0.0 0.0x 3.6x
3.1x 19.0x
rotorua
Central north island*
10.8x 4.0x tasman
1.8x 1.6x
Westland
5.2x 3.2x
0.0x 3.6x
hurunui
Queenstown-lakes
1.5x 1.5 1.6x
moUNtAIN BIKINg DIStRICt AveRAge
Mackenzie Injury
SAR
3.5x 3.5 1.6x
southland * Central North Island is a combination of Ruapehu and Taupo districts.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
91 91
who? who?
mountain biking gender
The data begins to challenge an assumption that males and females participate in mountain biking in a similar way. with respect to gender, males are far more likely to be involved in an injury and a Search and rescue event when mountain biking.
For eVerY 100,000 Male Mountain BiKers in a Year:
male
595 53 Injured
Involved in Search & Rescues
For eVerY 100,000 FeMale Mountain BiKers in a Year:
Female
353 30 Injured
Involved in Search & Rescues
92
mouNTAiN BikiNg
Annual incidents There were a much greater number of males involved in Search and Rescue and injury numbers than females.
male
Female
24
9
People involved in Search & Rescues
People involved in Search & Rescues
108
272
Injuries
Injuries
30,580
45,769
total participants
21,253
International visitors
24,516
New Zealanders
total participants
17,388
International visitors
13,192
New Zealanders N.B:. 0.5% of participants surveyed did not disclose their gender.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
93 93
ethnicity and nationality Mountain biking is predominantly participated in by those of European ethnicity. This is reflected equally in injury and Search and Rescue statistics. Each data source represented ethnicity categorisation slightly differently, and we’ve remained true to their definitions of demographic categorisation.
ethnicity of New Zealand mountain bikers
8% maori
76%
10% other
NZ european
4% Asian
1%
Pacific Island Nations
94
mouNTAiN BikiNg
ethnicity of mountain biking injuries
85% european
1%
4%
4%
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
maori
4%
other
1%
Unknown
Asian
ethnicity of mountain bikers involved in a Search & Rescue
1%
1%
2%
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
maori
10% Unknown
other
3%
84% european
Asian
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
95
Age groups
Participation
participation is very high in the 35-49 year old bracket (40%). Although not surveyed for participation, there is clearly people under the age of 16 that participate, and this is shown in injuries and Search and rescues.
25-34 Year olds Were overrePresented in search and rescues
75+
65-74
1%
50-64
27%
35-49
40%
25-34
18%
16-24
14%
≤15
96
-
photo: Jay French
-
4,182 Injuries
171
People involved in Search & Rescues
0%
0%
2%
1%
21%
26%
37%
4% 22%
16%
26%
13%
11%
10%
14%
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
mouNTAiN BikiNg
moUNtAIN BIKINg totAl INCIDeNtS
97
key insights
98
27% of all mountain BiKers involved in a search & rescue Were in the central north island
35-49 Year olds Were the most active aGe GrouP, But Were under rePresented in inJuries and search and rescues
search and rescues Were 4 times hiGher on easter and Queens BirthdaY WeeKends
71% of inJuries Were to the uPPer BodY
mouNTAiN BikiNg
mountain BiKinG inJuries increased 354% BetWeen 2006 and 2014
tasman district had more than 10 times the numBer of mountain BiKinG inJuries than the nZ averaGe
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99
trail running With trail running growing in popularity, we decided to include this activity as a starting point for reviewing over time. It has an extremely high rate of injury but a very low rate of Search and Rescues in comparison to the traditional activities of tramping, hunting and mountaineering. There were no trail running fatalities during the 7.5 years we examined.
79,660 neW Zealand trail runners partiCipate per Year
total recorded incidents Injuries: 14,344
(11 years)
People involved in Search (5 years) & Rescues: 65
100 100
oF all 5 aCtiVities, trailinG runninG represents:
22% 2%
TrAiL ruNNiNg
1,304 Injuries
13
People involved in Search & Rescues
each year there were on average
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101
what?
how many trail runners in a typical Search & Rescue? During the 5 years of Search and Rescue data we explored, there were 65 people involved in a total of 50 Search and Rescue events. 68% of those found were not injured while another 17% only required ďŹ rst aid. Most Search and Rescues were for a solo trail runner or to rescue a single person lost or injured from a multi-person trip.
8%
two people
88% one person
2%
three people
2%
Four or more people
31% of PeoPle involved in a search & rescue Were inJured 102 102
TrAiL ruNNiNg
2%
head
1%
1%
Shoulder
torso
7%
Back/spine
13%
hip, upper leg, thigh
25%
23%
Ankle
Knee
18% lower leg
7%
Foot and toes
What were the injuries? ConďŹ rming our assumption, 87% of injuries were sustained on the legs. 95% of injuries were soft tissue injuries.
2%
laceration, puncture wound, sting
1.5%
Fracture/dislocation
Diagnosis
0.5% other
95%
Soft tissue injury
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
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when?
Trail running injuries are increasing considerably and at a faster rate than the traditional outdoor activities of tramping, hunting and mountaineering. over the 11 years of data we have seen an increase of 329%. Search and rescue numbers however are remaining steady. January 2012 had a higher number due to one event which resulted in a large group rescue. injury rates drop off slightly during the colder months, however this drop-off was not as large as seen with the other 5 activities.
1874
1866
1783 1606
1,304
1485
1446
Injuries
tRAIl RUNNINg ANNUAl AveRAge
718
875
1098
1161
433
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
21
13
People involved in Search & Rescues tRAIl RUNNINg ANNUAl AveRAge
13 11
10
10
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15
104
109 Injuries
1.1
People involved in Search & Rescues
JAN
10%
29%
FeB
10%
14%
mAR
9%
4%
APR
8%
14% FeB
mAy
8%
2%
JUN
6%
4%
JUl
7%
6%
AUg
7%
0%
SeP
8%
0%
oCt
10%
6%
Nov
9%
10%
DeC
7%
12% insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
TrAiL ruNNiNg
tRAIl RUNNINg moNthly AveRAge
105
tRAIl RUNNINg WeeKly AveRAge
25 0.3
Weekly trail running incidents
Injuries
Trail runners were more commonly involved in incidents during the weekend, with approximately double the injuries and people involved in Search and Rescues occurring on Saturdays and Sundays.
People involved in Search & Rescues
106 106
moN
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
SAt
SUN
13%
12%
12%
11%
9%
24%
20%
5%
5%
8%
15%
11%
29%
28%
TrAiL ruNNiNg
Public holidays There does not appear to be a high number of injuries occurring on public holidays compared to other weekends. however, the amount of people involved in Search and Rescue increased significantly on Easter weekend and over the christmas-New Year period.
4.9
tRAIl RUNNINg DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
4.9 4.3 3.9
3.5 Injuries
3.2
2.2
0.3
0.2
0.0
0.0
Queen’s Birthday weekend
0.0
0.0
anZaC weekend
0.1
Christmas new Year period
labour weekend
easter weekend
Waitangi weekend
People involved in Search & Rescues
WeeKend incidents Were more Prevalent than PuBlic holidaYs insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
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where?
trail running districts
Although there were very few people involved in Search and Rescues for trail runners, Central North Island district had more than 15 times the national district average.
auckland
Queenstownlakes
3115
208
875
rotorua 449
injuries
Central north island*
tRAIl RUNNINg DIStRICt AveRAge
(11 years)
southland
256
tasman 151
Westland 76
204
Mackenzie 29
0.9
people involved in search and rescues tRAIl RUNNINg DIStRICt AveRAge
(5 years)
Central north island* 15
Queenstownlakes
rotorua 5
6
auckland
southland
Westland
3
tasman 1
2
2
Mackenzie 0
108 108
TrAiL ruNNiNg
15.0x 3.2x auckland
these hotspots show which districts have a higher/lower than average representation: To get an idea of how a particular regions compared to each other, we calculated the national average and we represented this average as 1.0. As an example, you can see that Auckland has 15 times the national average (15.0x) of injuries.
1.2x 15.9x
Central north island*
2.2x 5.3x
rotorua
0.7x 1.1x tasman
0.4x 2.1x
4.2x 6.4x
Westland
tRAIl RUNNINg DIStRICt AveRAge
Queenstown-lakes
Injury
SAR
0.1x 0.0x
Mackenzie
1.0x 1.0 2.1x 2.1
southland
* Central North Island is a combination of Ruapehu and Taupo districts.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
109 109
who?
trail running gender
There was a fairly even spread across genders in regard to participation. males were slightly more likely than females to be injured and involved in a Search and rescue.
For eVerY 100,000 nZ Male trail runners in a Year:
male
1,668 19 Injured
Involved in Search & Rescues
For eVerY 100,000 nZ FeMale trail runners in a Year:
Female
1,617 13 Injured
Involved in Search & Rescues
110
TrAiL ruNNiNg
Annual incidents 1 in 61 trail runners were injured each year. This is a much higher rate of injury than the other 4 activities included in this publication.
male
Female
8
People involved in Search & Rescues
674
Injuries
40,423
total participants
5
People involved in Search & Rescues
630 Injuries
38,963 total participants
N.B:. 0.5% of participants surveyed did not disclose their gender.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
111111
ethnicity and nationality Although participation in trail running is predominately from NZ European, there is an over-representation of this nationality in the injury and Search and Rescue percentages. Each data source represented ethnicity categorisation slightly differently, and we’ve remained true to their definitions of demographic categorisation.
ethnicity of New Zealand trail runners
66%
15%
6%
other
Pacific Island Nations
9%
9%
NZ european
Asian
112
maori
TrAiL ruNNiNg
ethnicity of trail running injuries
2%
5%
84%
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
maori
european
4%
Unknown
1%
4%
Asian
other
ethnicity of trail runners involved in a Search & Rescue
17%
2%
72%
other
Unknown
2%
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
8%
european
Asian
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113
Age groups
Participation
86% of participants were aged under 50 years old. A significant proportion of the injuries and people involved in Search and rescues were aged between 35-49.
75+
43% of inJuries Were 35-49 Year olds
65-74
2%
50-64
13%
35-49
34%
25-34
24%
16-24
≤15
114
-
28%
-
TrAiL ruNNiNg
tRAIl RUNNINg totAl INCIDeNtS
14,344 Injuries
65
People involved in Search & Rescues
0%
0%
1%
0%
14%
13%
4% 43%
38%
22%
18%
15%
30%
5%
2%
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
115
key insights
116
86% of trail runninG inJuries Were someWhere on the leG
onlY 14% of trail runners involved in search and rescues Were inJured
there Was a reasonaBlY even Gender sPlit of ParticiPation and incidents in trail runninG
central north island had nearlY 16 times the averaGe PeoPle involved in search and rescues
TrAiL ruNNiNg
55% of PeoPle involved in search and rescues occurred durinG summer
35-49 Year olds Were far more liKelY to Be inJured While trail runninG
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activities summary For every 244 trampers, 1 was injured. For every 2,276 trampers, 1 was involved in a Search and rescue event. For every 128,227 trampers, 1 never made it home.
For every 192 hunters, 1 was injured. For every 1,668 hunters, 1 was involved in a Search and rescue event. For every 47,201 hunters, 1 never made it home.
For every 415 New zealand mountaineers, 1 was injured. For every 706 New zealand mountaineers, 1 was involved in a Search and rescue event. For every 8,355 New zealand mountaineers, 1 never made it home.
For every 192 mountain bikers, 1 was injured. For every 2,220 mountain bikers 1 was involved in a Search and rescue event. For every 61 New zealand trail runners, 1 was injured. For every 6,128 New zealand trail runners, 1 was involved in a Search and rescue event.
118
AcTiViTieS
Percentage of incidents per activity
Tramping
Trail Running
63% 53%
45% 22% 2% 17% 6%
22%
6%
1%
24%
7%
31% Hunting
Mountain Biking
Injuries People involved in Search and Rescues Fatalities Mountaineering
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119
hotspots The 5 hotspots we’ve focused on represent areas of the country that either have high levels of participation or a higher number of things that went wrong. The hotspot areas are based on either the district or the nearest postcode to where the incident occurred. In locations where there is a district boundary which crosses a common recreation area, we have combined this into one location. there are 67 distriCts aCross neW Zealand
86
Injuries
7.8
People involved in Search & Rescues
0.2
Fatalities
District average each year
120 120
47% of fatalities in the selected activities Were in these 5 hotsPots
hoTSpoTS auckland region**
Central north island*
Queenstown-lakes district
Mackenzie district
southland district
* Central North Island is a combination of Ruapehu and Taupo districts. ** Auckland includes the districts of Rodney, Waitakere City, North Shore City, Auckland City, Manukau City, Papakura and Franklin.
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
121 121
Auckland
A large proportion of our national population reside in this area and explore the outdoors. more than 32% of New zealand’s population live in the Auckland region. There are plenty of recreation opportunities for both residents and tourists, as the region has numerous parks that are suitable for walking, tramping, mountain biking, trail running, and hunting. There are 34 regional parks around Auckland, which feature a huge range of land types: wetlands, farms, beaches, rainforests, and bush-clad mountain ranges. Auckland city itself is built around a series of 48 volcanic cones, which are currently dormant and provide striking scenery around the city. in the hauraki gulf near Auckland there are several popular recreation spots, including great Barrier island, waiheke island, and rangitoto island. These islands can be reached by regular ferries from Auckland, as well as by small planes to great Barrier island. Auckland Airport is the busiest in New zealand, and is the hub for most international ights arriving and departing New zealand. Because Auckland has more than 7 million visitors each year, there is a good range of accommodation available. There are also 7 different information centres and one Doc visitor centre in the region. The Auckland region covers a total of 4,938km2 and includes recreational areas such as the waitakere regional park, which has 250km of walking and tramping tracks. As well as the hunua ranges, the largest area of native forest in the region with many mountain biking, walking and tramping tracks.
total recorded incidents Injuries: 11,944
(11 years)
People involved in Search & Rescues: 68 (5 years) Fatalities: 1 122
(7.5 years)
each year there were on average
1,086 injuries
14
people involved in search and rescues
0.1
Fatalities
oF all the inCidents aCross the 5 aCtiVities, this hotspot represents:
12.8% 2.5% 1%
AuckLAND
auckland region percentage of incidents per activity
Tramping
Trail Running
72%
35%
27% 4% 4% 3% 3%
18%
34% Hunting
Mountain Biking
100%
Mountaineering
Injuries People involved in Search and Rescues Fatalities
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123
aucKland had the hiGhest numBer of inJuries of all hotsPots
what?
What caused the fatalities?
There was only one relevant fatality in the Auckland region. This was caused by a hunter accidentally discharging their firearm and hitting their companion.
1
Shot (other)
People involved in a typical Search & Rescue Like the national and activity specific sections, most Search and Rescues in Auckland were to locate a single person or to rescue a single person lost or injured from a multi-person trip. In this section we’ve also explored the Search and Rescue-related extent of injury. The majority of people involved in a Search and Rescue were uninjured.
77% one person
17% two people
72% Uninjured
10% 4% 10% 1% % Slightly (first aid)
124 124
6%
three people
moderate (doctor)
Severe (hospitalised)
Deceased
AuckLAND
when? years
As seen in the national section, injuries have shown a steady increase over time and this appears to be increasing at a rate faster than the growth in population and international visitors. The number of people involved in Search and rescues varied each year with no clear trend over the 5 years of data available.
1740 1574 1403
1398
1222 1197
1,086
1126
Injuries
AUCKlAND ANNUAl AveRAge
1046 414
584
240
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
14
2011
2012
2013
2014
15
15
14
People involved in Search & Rescues AUCKlAND ANNUAl AveRAge
13
11
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15
0.1
1
Fatalities
AUCKlAND ANNUAl AveRAge
0
0
0
0
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
0
0
0
2012
2013
2014
(half year)
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
125
months In the Auckland region there was a reasonably consistent spread of injuries by month, indicating that many people continued to venture outdoors during winter. The number of people involved in Search and Rescues spiked in April, otherwise the monthly spread was relatively consistent.
inJuries tYPicallY occurred on WeeKends
AUCKlAND moNthly AveRAge
90
Injuries
126
1.2
People involved in Search & Rescues
JAN
10%
12%
FeB
10%
10%
mAR
10%
9%
APR
10%
16%
mAy
8%
7%
JUN
6%
9%
JUl
6%
7%
AUg
7%
6%
SeP
7%
10%
oCt
9%
Nov
9%
6%
DeC
8%
4%
3%
0.01 Fatalities
1
AuckLAND
Weekly The national section showed an increase in injuries and people involved in Search and rescues over the weekend, Auckland largely mirrors this pattern. with only one fatality it was impossible to draw significant insights on fatalities.
moN
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
SAt
SUN
10%
9%
11%
9%
8%
26%
27%
12%
10%
13%
10%
26%
24%
4%
1
Injuries
People involved in Search & Rescues
Fatalities
Public holidays public holidays do not appear to contribute to an increase in injuries with the average being similar to any given weekend.
AUCKlAND DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
4.2
5.6
5.2
6.2 4.0
4.9
2.8 Injuries
0.25
0.2
0.14 0.07
0.04 labour weekend
Queen’s Birthday weekend
anZaC weekend
easter weekend
Waitangi weekend
auckland anniversary
People involved in Search & Rescues
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127
who?
AUCKlAND ANNUAl INCIDeNtS
male
gender
Looking at the numbers side-by-side gives us insight into who got into trouble. The gender split of incidents in Auckland is reflective of the national section which shows that more males were injured and involved in Search and rescues than females.
maori
6% other
0
Fatalities
362
161
655
431
People involved in Search & Rescues
Injuries
6% maori
Injuries
Nationality of fatalities
4%
ethnicity of people involved in a Search & Rescue
ethnicity of injuries
each data source represented ethnicity categorisation differently. Despite this, we can still see that injuries and Search and rescues overwhelmingly involved those of european (or caucasian) descent. māori and Asian ethnicities are represented as a higher percentage of Search and rescues than injuries.
3%
0.1
Fatalities
People involved in Search & Rescues
ethnicity
Pacific Island Nations
Female
9% Asian
1
6% Asian
New Zealander
21%
Not reported
81% 128
european
65% european
Age A closer look at the age of each person gives further insight into who got into trouble. in Auckland, 35-49 year olds were more commonly injured, however those younger than 35 made up the majority of those involved in Search and rescue.
AuckLAND
96% of PeoPle inJured While recreatinG in aucKland also resided in aucKland
AUCKlAND totAl INCIDeNtS
11,944 Age 75+
Injuries
1%
68
People involved in Search & Rescues
1
Fatalities
1%
7%
65-74
3%
50-64
19%
18%
35-49
35%
21%
25-34
19%
22%
16-24
14%
22%
≤15
9%
9%
1
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home location of injuries All injured people provide a home address when submitting their Acc claim. of all injuries which occurred in Auckland, 96% of those injured resided in Auckland. international visitor numbers are difficult to determine as we believe visitors often supply their New zealand accommodation address when submitting an Acc claim. This address often appears to be geographically close to where the injury occurred.
96%
Auckland Region
1% % hamilton
130
aPProXimatelY 1 in everY 8 inJuries in neW Zealand occurred in aucKland
in contrast With other hotsPots, incidents did not siGnificantlY increase on PuBlic holidaYs
72% of PeoPle involved in search and rescues Were uninJured, the hiGhest across the 5 hotsPots
96% of PeoPle inJured While recreatinG in aucKland also resided in aucKland
AuckLAND
For every 1 fatality in Auckland
103
people were involved in Search and Rescues
8,240
were injured.
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131
Central North Island
With the oldest national park in New Zealand, this is a popular area to explore. The central North island, which consists of ruapehu and Taupo Districts, has a wide range of terrain and with more than 1 million visitors per year, the area is particularly popular for outdoor activities. it’s an active volcanic zone, featuring volcanoes, hot springs, native bush, wetlands, and plateaus. The area also has strong farming and forestry industries. The central North island boasts New zealand’s oldest national park, Tongariro National park (including the world-renowned Tongariro Alpine crossing), and the country’s largest lake, Lake Taupo. Tongariro National park is centred around 3 active volcanoes, Tongariro, Ngauruhoe, and ruapehu, and has a large network of facilities for tramping, camping, mountain biking, hunting, climbing, and skiing. other popular tourist spots in the central North island include huka Falls, the Aratiatia rapids Tracks, the Five mile Bay and Awaroa Tracks, the whakapapa Village walking tracks, and hihitahi Forest Sanctuary. The area is served by Taupo Airport, but is also easily accessible by car, bus, or train from Auckland and wellington. There are visitor information centres and tourist accommodation in Taumarunui, ohakune/ruapehu, Turangi, and Taupo. There is also a Doc Visitor centre in Tongariro National park. The central North island area covers a total of 13,068km2. it includes 16 Doc huts and features one of New zealand’s great walks, the Tongariro Northern circuit. The only glaciers in the North island are the 8 on mt ruapehu, which is the highest point in the North island.
total recorded incidents Injuries: 4,048
(11 years)
People involved in Search & Rescues: 410 (5 years) Fatalities: 5 132
(7.5 years)
each year there were on average
368 injuries
82
people involved in search and rescues
0.7
Fatalities
oF all the inCidents aCross the 5 aCtiVities, this hotspot represents:
4.3% 15% 5%
ceNTrAL NorTh iSLAND
central north island percentage of incidents per activity
Tramping
Trail Running
63% 51%
6% 6% 17% 4% 23%
16% 2% 20% 11% Hunting
Mountain Biking
80%
Mountaineering
Injuries People involved in Search and Rescues Fatalities
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2
what?
Falling
1
What caused the fatalities?
Shot (misidentified target)
2
There were 5 fatalities in the Central North Island between July 2007 and December 2014. 4 were hunting-related and 1 occurred while mountaineering on Mt Ruapehu.
Shot (self)
People involved in a typical Search & Rescue Like the national and activity specific sections, most Search and Rescues in the Central North Island were to locate a single person or to rescue a single person lost or injured from a multiperson trip. In this section we’ve also explored the Search and Rescue-related extent of injury. The majority of people involved in a Search and Rescue were uninjured.
80%
16% 3% 1% %
one person
56% Uninjured
two people
7% % 9% Slightly (first aid)
134 134
moderate (doctor)
three people
Four people
26%
Severe (hospitalised)
1% %
Five or more people
1% %
Deceased
1% %
Not recorded
when? years
As seen in the national section, injuries have shown a steady increase over time and this appears to be increasing at a rate faster than the growth in population and international visitors. The number of fatalities and people involved in Search and rescue appears to be steady.
ceNTrAL NorTh iSLAND
central north island had the most PeoPle involved in search and rescue 553 521 456
368
440
446
407
397
Injuries
CeNtRAl NoRth ISlAND ANNUAl AveRAge
171
226
314
117
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
82
2012
2013
92
2014
92
90
People involved in Search & Rescues CeNtRAl NoRth ISlAND ANNUAl AveRAge
73
63
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2
0.7
1
1
1
Fatalities
CeNtRAl NoRth ISlAND ANNUAl AveRAge
0
0
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
0
0
2012
2013
2014
(half year)
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135
months In the Central North Island, we see a strong seasonal pattern of injuries and Search and Rescues occurring during the warmer months. The number of people injured hit its peak in April, while those involved in Search and Rescues spiked in January. While the number of fatalities was small, most occurred during the peak hunting months of April and May.
26% of PeoPle involved in search and rescues Were severelY inJured
CeNtRAl NoRth ISlAND moNthly AveRAge
31
Injuries
136
7
People involved in Search & Rescues
0.05 Fatalities
JAN
11%
18%
FeB
10%
8%
mAR
12%
16%
APR
15%
11%
2
mAy
8%
7%
1
JUN
5%
4%
JUl
5%
AUg
5%
SeP
6%
oCt
6%
4%
Nov
9%
8%
DeC
9%
12%
3%
5%
1
3%
1
ceNTrAL NorTh iSLAND
Weekly The Central North Island largely reflects what we see in the national section with an increase in injuries and people involved in Search and rescues over the weekend. Fatalities were spread throughout the week, however there were not enough to draw any conclusive insights.
moN
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
SAt
SUN
10%
8%
10%
11%
10%
31%
19%
Injuries
13%
10%
11%
12%
11%
27%
15%
People involved in Search & Rescues
1
1
2
1
Fatalities
Public holidays easter weekend had nearly 5 times the average number of people involved in Search and rescues and more than 2.5 times the number of injuries. Auckland Anniversary weekend also had a significant increase in incidents which reflects the number of Aucklanders who travel down to the central North island (see home location on page 140).
CeNtRAl NoRth ISlAND DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
1.7
1.93
2.62
1.94 1.39
0.9
1.21
Injuries
1.0
0.95
0.8
0.7
0.67 0.44
0.2
0.29
0.2
Christmas new Year period
labour weekend
Queen’s Birthday weekend
anZaC weekend
easter weekend
Waitangi weekend
auckland anniversary
People involved in Search & Rescues
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137
who? gender
Looking at the numbers side-by-side gives us insight into who got into trouble. The gender split of incidents in the Central North Island is reflective of the national section which shows that more males were injured and involved in Search and rescues than females.
Asian
8% other
Female
0.5
0.1
32
21
Fatalities
Fatalities
People involved in Search & Rescues
216
152
Injuries
1%
middle eastern
3% other
Injuries
Nationality of fatalities
3%
ethnicity of people involved in a Search & Rescue
ethnicity of injuries
each data source represented ethnicity categorisation differently. Despite this, we can still see that injuries and Search and rescues overwhelmingly involved those of european (or caucasian) descent. The percentage of Asian people involved in Search and rescues were 3 times higher than injuries. The percentage of māori involved in Search and rescues was half that of injuries.
1%
male
People involved in Search & Rescues
ethnicity
Pacific Island Nations
CeNtRAl NoRth ISlAND ANNUAl INCIDeNtS
4% maori
5
New Zealander
7%
9%
81%
82%
maori
138
european
Asian
european
Age
A closer look at the age of each person gives further insight into who got into trouble. in the central North island, 16-24 year olds were far more likely to be involved in Search and rescues than 35-49 year olds, while 35-49 year olds were more likely to be injured.
ceNTrAL NorTh iSLAND
central north island had more PeoPle in search & rescues than anY other location
CeNtRAl NoRth ISlAND totAl INCIDeNtS
4,048 Age
Injuries
410
People involved in Search & Rescues
1%
3%
65-74
5%
6%
50-64
23%
20%
35-49
29%
16%
25-34
18%
19%
16-24
18%
28%
≤15
6%
8%
75+
5
Fatalities
0%
3
2
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139
home location of injuries All injured people provide a home address when submitting their Acc claim. of all injuries which occurred in the central North island, the great majority resided outside the district. Notably, 25% came from Auckland. International visitor numbers are difficult to determine as we believe visitors often supply their New zealand accommodation address when submitting an Acc claim. This address often appears to be geographically close to where the injury occurred.
25% Auckland
3% %
5%
tauranga City
hamilton City
4% % Rotorua
28%
Central North Island
7% %
Wellington City
140
desPite a larGe numBer of tramPers in this area, there Were no fatalities in this activitY
80% of fatalities in the central north island Were hunters
central north island had the most PeoPle involved in search and rescues When comPared to the Whole of neW Zealand
26% of PeoPle involved in search and rescues Were severelY inJured, the hiGhest PercentaGe across the 5 hotsPots
Central north island
For every 1 fatality in Central North Island
125
559
people were involved in Search and Rescues
were injured.
Insights developed by the New Zealand Mountain Safety Council - 2016
141
Mackenzie
Situated amongst our highest peaks, this is a key tourist attraction spot for all kinds of recreation. The mackenzie District is known for its stunning scenery, from beautiful mountains, glacier lakes and rivers, to rolling green hills. it is the home of New zealand’s tallest mountain, Aoraki/ mt cook. The surrounding national park has a total of 19 peaks over 3,000m high. other popular tourist spots in the mackenzie district include Lake Tekapo and the Tasman glacier. The region has about 600,000 visitors each year, drawn to the natural scenery and clear starry nights. Large portions of the mackenzie District are devoted to farming and agriculture, but the varied terrain provides lots of opportunities for outdoor recreation, including tramping, cycling, skiing, hunting, and rock and mountain climbing. The mackenzie District is several hours’ drive from the nearest large airports, in christchurch and Queenstown, although sightseeing ights are available from smaller airports nearby. State highway 8 runs through the district. The mackenzie district covers a total of 7,140km2 and there are 15 Doc huts and one Doc Visitor centre in the Aoraki/ mount cook National park. At the 2013 census, the mackenzie District only had 3 towns with a permanent population over 300 people: Twizel, Fairlie, and Tekapo.
total recorded incidents Injuries: 612
(11 years)
People involved in Search & Rescues: 108 (5 years) Fatalities: 12 142
(7.5 years)
each year there were on average
56
injuries
22
people involved in search and rescues
1.6
Fatalities
oF all the inCidents aCross the 5 aCtiVities, this hotspot represents:
0.7% 4% 12%
mAckeNzie
mackenzie district percentage of incidents per activity
Tramping
Trail Running
56% 51%
17%
5%
17% 4%
15%
15% 8%
31% Mountain Biking
Hunting
83%
Mountaineering
Injuries People involved in Search and Rescues Fatalities
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
143
what?
7
3
Falling
Avalanche
1
What caused the fatalities?
1*
hypothermia
Unknown
There were 12 fatalities in Mackenzie between July 2007 and December 2014. 10 involved mountaineers in Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park and 2 were trampers. *Body not recovered
People involved in a typical Search & Rescue Like the national and activity specific sections, most Search and Rescues in Mackenzie were to locate a single person or to rescue a single person lost or injured from a multi-person trip. In this section we’ve also explored the Search and Rescue-related extent of injury. Just over half of people involved in Search and Rescues were uninjured.
69% one person
16% 10% 4% two people
54% Uninjured
9% Slightly (first aid)
144 144
three people
21% moderate (doctor)
Four people
6%
Severe (hospitalised)
1% %
Five or more people
9%
Deceased
1% %
Not recorded
when? years
As seen in the national section, injuries have shown a steady increase over time and this appears to be increasing at a rate faster than the growth in population and international visitors. The number of fatalities and people involved in Search and rescues varies each year, with a trend starting to indicate an increase.
mAckeNzie
macKenZie had the hiGhest fatalitY rate of anY district 81 79 65 62
56
57
58
58
Injuries
mACKeNZIe ANNUAl AveRAge
40
50
2006
2007
38 24
2004
2005
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
22
2013
2014
29 24
People involved in Search & Rescues mACKeNZIe ANNUAl AveRAge
21
16
18
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 4
1.6
3 2
2
Fatalities
mACKeNZIe ANNUAl AveRAge
1
2007
0
2008
2009
2010
0
0
2011
2012
2013
2014
(half year)
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
145
months In Mackenzie we see a strong pattern of injuries and Search and Rescues occurring during summer and autumn. The number of people injured hits its peak in January, while those involved in Search and Rescues spikes in December. December is also when the majority of fatalities occurred.
58% of the fatalities occurred in decemBer
mACKeNZIe moNthly AveRAge
4.7
Injuries
JAN
15%
13%
FeB
11%
16%
mAR
13%
5%
APR
9%
16%
mAy
7%
5%
JUN
7%
11%
JUl
6%
AUg SeP
146
1.8
People involved in Search & Rescues
2% 3%
0.1
Fatalities
1
3%
1% 7%
oCt
7%
0%
Nov
9%
6%
DeC
12%
19%
3 1 7
mAckeNzie
Weekly Mackenzie largely reflects what we see in the national section with an increase in injuries over the weekend. people involved in Search and rescues were more evenly spread across the week with a peak on monday. There were also a high number of fatalities which occurred on a monday.
moN
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
SAt
SUN
11%
13%
10%
10%
10%
25%
20%
Injuries
22%
12%
13%
12%
10%
15%
16%
People involved in Search & Rescues
1
1
2
2
1
5
Fatalities
Public holidays easter, Queen’s Birthday and Labour weekends all had more than 3 times the average number of injuries. of all public holidays it was the christmas-New Year period which accounted for the highest average number of people involved in Search and rescues at more than 4 times the average.
mACKeNZIe DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
0.13
0.45
0.45
0.45 0.28
0.25
0.2
Injuries
0.23 0.15
0.05
0.07
Christmas new Year period
labour weekend
Queen’s Birthday weekend
anZaC weekend
easter weekend
Waitangi weekend
People involved in Search & Rescues
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147
who?
mACKeNZIe ANNUAl INCIDeNtS
male
gender
Looking at the numbers side-by-side gives us insight into who got into trouble. The gender split of incidents in Mackenzie shows that significantly more males were injured and involved in Search and rescues than females. All fatalities were male.
1.6
0
17
4.6
33
23
Fatalities
3% Asian
People involved in Search & Rescues
Injuries
2% other
3%
middle eastern
Injuries
Nationality of fatalities
ethnicity of people involved in a Search & Rescue
ethnicity of injuries
each data source represented ethnicity categorisation differently. Despite this, we can still see that injuries and Search and rescues overwhelmingly involved those of european (or caucasian) descent. in contrast to the national average, 75% of fatalities were foreigners.
maori
Fatalities
People involved in Search & Rescues
ethnicity
1%
Female
1
1
Swedish
Japanese
1
malaysian
1
Israeli
4% Asian
2
german
10% other
7%
Not reported
3
Australian
86% 148
european
84% european
3
New Zealander
Age A closer look at the age of each person gives further insight into who got into trouble. in mackenzie, those aged 25-34 were more likely to be involved in Search and rescues and made up 50% of fatalities.
mAckeNzie
half of the fatalities Were to those aGed 25-34
mACKeNZIe totAl INCIDeNtS
612 Age
Injuries
108
People involved in Search & Rescues
12
Fatalities
1%
0%
65-74
7%
1%
50-64
21%
18%
3
35-49
31%
20%
3
25-34
18%
35%
16-24
20%
23%
3%
3%
75+
25%
25%
6
50%
0%
≤15
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
149
4%
Auckland Region
home location of injuries All injured people provide a home address when submitting their Acc claim. of all injuries which occurred in mackenzie, the great majority resided outside the district. The data indicates that they generally came from the closest cities. International visitor numbers are difficult to determine as we believe visitors often supply their New zealand accommodation address when submitting an Acc claim. This address mackenzie often appears to be geographically close to where the injury occurred.
15%
4%
21%
Christchurch City
11% timaru
Queenstown-lakes
20% Dunedin City
macKenZie had the hiGhest fatalitY rate of anY district
half of the fatalities Were to those aGed 25-34
150
75% of the fatalities in macKenZie Were international visitors
58% of the fatalities occurred in decemBer
Mackenzie
For every 1 fatality in Mackenzie
14 35
people were involved in Search and Rescues
were injured.
Insights developed by the New Zealand Mountain Safety Council - 2016
151
Queenstown-Lakes
This area of New Zealand is a prime location to experience all kinds of outdoor activities. The Queenstown-Lakes district is one of New zealand’s hottest tourist destinations, and it regularly features in international top 10 travel lists. each year, nearly 4 million visitors are attracted by the adventure tourism and outdoor recreation opportunities in the area; the nearby mountains, glaciers, rivers and lakes; and national parks in the neighbouring districts. Queenstown and the surrounding areas are popular for mountain biking, mountaineering, tramping, trail running, skiing, and hunting. At the 2013 census, the Queenstown-Lakes district had one of the fastest growing populations in New zealand. even so, at the height of the tourist seasons in summer and winter, there can be 3 times as many tourists as locals. There is an international airport in Queenstown, which has regular flights to and from other centres around New Zealand and Australia. Queenstown Airport is New zealand’s busiest helicopter base, and sightseeing flights to Milford Sound and mount cook depart regularly. Tourist accommodation and information centres are available in Queenstown and wanaka. There is also a Doc Visitor centre in Queenstown. The Queenstown-Lakes district covers a total of 8,719km2 and is one of the key access locations for trips to surrounding national parks and great walks. The Queenstown Trail, one of New zealand’s great rides, runs through more than 110km of the district
total recorded incidents Injuries: 6,563
(11 years)
People involved in Search & Rescues: 148 (5 years) Fatalities: 15 152
(7.5 years)
each year there were on average
597
injuries
30
people involved in search and rescues
2
Fatalities
oF all the inCidents aCross the 5 aCtiVities, this hotspot represents:
7% 5.5% 15%
QueeNSTowN-LAkeS
Queenstown-lakes district percentage of incidents per activity
Tramping
Trail Running
72%
37% 53%
4%
13%
4% 5%
6% 1% 12%
13%
33% 45%
Hunting
Mountain Biking
Mountaineering
Injuries People involved in Search and Rescues Fatalities
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
153
what?
13 Falling
What caused the fatalities?
1
1
There were 15 fatalities in Queenstown-Lakes between July 2007 and December 2014. 8 were trampers, 5 were mountaineers and 2 were hunters.
River crossing
Shot (misidentified target)
People involved in a typical Search & Rescue Like the national and activity specific sections, most Search and Rescues in Queenstown-Lakes were to locate a single person or to rescue a single person lost or injured from a multi-person trip. In this section we’ve also explored the Search and Rescue-related extent of injury. Just over half of people involved in a Search and Rescue were uninjured.
82%
15% two people
one person
54% Uninjured
7% % Slightly (first aid)
154 154
2% 2%
three people
Four or more people
18% 17% moderate (doctor)
Severe (hospitalised)
3%
Deceased
1% %
Not recorded
when?
QueeNSTowN-LAkeS
13 of 15 fatalities Were due to fallinG
years
As seen in the national section, injuries have shown a steady increase over time and this appears to be increasing at a much faster rate than the growth in population and international visitors. The number of people involved in Search and rescues is decreasing. The number of fatalities remains steady.
984 937 836 708
597
514
Injuries
QUeeNStoWN-lAKeS ANNUAl AveRAge
289
400
553
583
590
169
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
30
2011
2012
2013
2014
36 32
People involved in Search & Rescues
31
QUeeNStoWN-lAKeS ANNUAl AveRAge
28
21
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 4
2
3 2
2
2
Fatalities QUeeNStoWN-lAKeS ANNUAl AveRAge
1
0
2007
2008
2009
1
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
(half year)
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155
months In Queenstown-Lakes we see a strong pattern of injuries and Search and Rescues occurring during the spring and summer seasons. The number of people injured and involved in Search and Rescues hits its peak in January. Similar to Mackenzie, December is the worst month for fatalities.
a Quarter of PeoPle in search & rescues occurred in JanuarY
QUeeNStoWN-lAKeS moNthly AveRAge
50
Injuries
JAN
16%
27%
FeB
12%
12%
mAR
13%
8%
APR
11%
12%
mAy
4%
0.2
Fatalities
2 1
3%
3%
3%
1
3%
2%
1
3%
0%
2
SeP
4%
5%
oCt
7%
9%
Nov
11%
11%
2
DeC
12%
7%
6
JUN JUl AUg
156
2.5
People involved in Search & Rescues
QueeNSTowN-LAkeS
Weekly Queenstown-Lakes largely reflects what we see in the national section with an increase in injuries over the weekend. people involved in Search and rescues and fatalities were more evenly spread across the week.
moN
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
SAt
SUN
12%
12%
12%
11%
11%
24%
18%
Injuries
13%
14%
15%
11%
18%
12%
18%
People involved in Search & Rescues
3
2
1
4
2
Fatalities
3
Public holidays waitangi weekend had 2.5 times the average number of injuries. easter weekend had more than 4 times the average number of people involved in Search and rescues.
4.00 3.84
QUeeNStoWN-lAKeS DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
3.27
2.30
2.46 1.84
1.5
1.64
Injuries
0.35 0.20
1.27 0.14
0.08 People involved in Search & Rescues
0.20 0.13
0.17
insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
Christmas new Year period
Westland anniversary
labour weekend
Queen’s Birthday weekend
anZaC weekend
southland anniversary
easter weekend
Waitangi weekend
0.07
157
who? Looking at the numbers side-by-side gives us insight into who got into trouble. The gender split of incidents in Queenstown-Lakes shows that significantly more males were injured and involved in Search and rescues than females. As a total of the hotspot dataset, 13 fatalities were male and 2 were female.
ethnicity
1% maori
2% Asian
ethnicity of people involved in a Search & Rescue
ethnicity of injuries
each data source represented ethnicity categorisation differently. Despite this, we can still see that injuries and Search and rescues overwhelmingly involved those of european (or caucasian) descent. exactly mirroring the national average, 73% of fatalities were New zealanders
male
Female
1.7
0.3
18
11
Fatalities
Fatalities
People involved in Search & Rescues
People involved in Search & Rescues
363
233
Injuries
2%
middle eastern
3% other
3% Asian
Injuries
Nationality of fatalities
gender
QUeeNStoWN-lAKeS ANNUAl INCIDeNtS
2
german
2
Australian
9% other
4%
Not reported
11
New Zealander
88% 158
european
88% european
Age
A closer look at the age of each person gives further insight into who got into trouble. in Queenstown-Lakes, those aged 25-34 were more likely to be injured or involved in Search and rescues. worryingly, those aged 16-24 accounted for 47% of fatalities.
QueeNSTowN-LAkeS
nearlY half of the fatalities Were to those aGed 16-24
QUeeNStoWN-lAKeS totAl INCIDeNtS
6,563 Age 75+
65-74
Injuries
1%
3%
148
People involved in Search & Rescues
15
Fatalities
2%
6%
1
50-64
16%
17%
1
35-49
31%
19%
4
25-34
31%
30%
16-24
16%
23%
3%
3%
2 7
≤15
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6%
Auckland Region
home location of injuries
5%
All injured people provide a home address when submitting their Acc claim. of all injuries which occurred in QueenstownLakes, the majority indicated a local address. international visitor numbers are difficult to determine as we believe visitors often supply their New zealand accommodation address when submitting an Acc claim. This address often appears to be geographically close to where the injury occurred.
Christchurch City
55%
Queenstown-lakes
18% Dunedin City
2% %
Invercargill City
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more PeoPle died in QueenstoWn-laKes than in anY other hotsPot
13 of 15 fatalities Were due to fallinG
82% of search and rescues Were for a sinGle Person or 1 Person from a multiPerson triP, the hiGhest PercentaGe across the 5 hotsPots
nearlY half of the fatalities Were to those aGed 16 – 24
Queenstown-Lakes
For every 1 fatality in Queenstown-Lakes
15 302
people were involved in Search and Rescues
were injured.
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Southland
This area is known worldwide for its scenic views and terrain to explore. Southland is one of the largest districts in New zealand and it incorporates 2 of New zealand’s largest national parks: Fiordland National park and rakiura National park. Southland’s terrain includes rainforests, farmland, beaches and coastlines, mountainous plains, lakes, and glaciers. each year, nearly 1 million people visit to see the area’s untouched landscapes and natural beauty. There are 4 of New zealand’s 9 great walks in Southland: the milford Track, routeburn Track, and kepler Track in Fiordland and the rakiura Track on rakiura/Stewart island. Although mountain biking is not allowed on the walking tracks in Fiordland National park, there is a network of mountain bike tracks throughout Southland. hunting is also a popular activity in the region. hunters from all over New zealand visit Fiordland in march and April to take part in the annual wapiti bugle. Southland’s main airport is in invercargill. Stewart island can be reached by ferry from Bluff or plane from invercargill Airport. There are visitor information centres in invercargill, gore, and Fiordland, and Doc Visitor centres in Fiordland and rakiura National parks. The Southland district covers a total of 29,552km2 and includes Stewart island/rakiura. There are 121 Doc huts across the district. Fiordland National park is New zealand’s largest national park, with over 1.2 million hectares of conservation area, and is part of the South west New zealand world heritage Area. rakiura National park is New zealand’s newest and southernmost national park.
total recorded incidents Injuries: 2,801
(11 years)
People involved in Search & Rescues: 168 (5 years) Fatalities: 12 162
(7.5 years)
each year there were on average
255 injuries
34
people involved in search and rescues
1.6
Fatalities
oF all the inCidents aCross the 5 aCtiVities, this hotspot represents:
3% 6% 12%
SouThLAND
southland district percentage of incidents per activity
Tramping
66%
Trail Running
67%
50%
1%
7%
19% 2% 8%
20% 25%
25% 10% Hunting
Mountain Biking
Mountaineering
Injuries People involved in Search and Rescues Fatalities
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7
what?
What caused the fatalities?
Falling
2
Shot (misidentified target)
1
1
hypothermia
Falling object
1
River crossing
There were 12 fatalities in Southland between July 2007 and December 2014. Half were tramping related with 3 hunting and 3 mountaineering fatalities.
People involved in a typical Search & Rescue Like the national and activity specific sections, most Search and Rescues in Southland were to locate a single person or to rescue a single person lost or injured from a multi-person trip. In this section we’ve also explored the Search and Rescue-related extent of injury. Close to half of people involved in a Search and Rescue were uninjured.
76% one person
15% two people
49% Uninjured
10% % 29% Slightly (first aid)
164 164
5% % 2%
three people
moderate (doctor)
Four people
7%
Severe (hospitalised)
1% % 5 or more
5% %
Deceased
when? years
injuries have shown a slight increase over time, which appears to be consistent with the growth in population and international visitors. The number of people involved in Search and rescues in Southland is declining each year. The number of fatalities remains steady.
313
299
255
274
268
SouThLAND
PeoPle involved in search & rescues decreased siGnificantlY
291
288
282
Injuries
SoUthlAND ANNUAl AveRAge
248 183
204
151
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
34
2011
43
2012
2013
2014
40
People involved in Search & Rescues SoUthlAND ANNUAl AveRAge
33
29
23
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15
2
2
2
2
2
2
Fatalities SoUthlAND ANNUAl AveRAge
1
2007
1
0
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
(half year)
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months In Southland we see a strong pattern of injuries and people involved in Search and Rescues occurring during the spring and summer seasons. Fatalities rose significantly in autumn which also coincides with ‘the roar’. The winter months see a considerable decrease in incidents, indicating that not many people venture outdoors in this area between May and October.
1 in 3 fatalities occurred in aPril
SoUthlAND moNthly AveRAge
21
Injuries
2.8
People involved in Search & Rescues
Fatalities
JAN
14%
14%
1
FeB
13%
21%
1
mAR
15%
17%
2
APR
15%
9%
mAy
5%
7%
JUN
4%
JUl AUg SeP
4 2
1%
2%
1%
3%
3%
3%
2% 3%
166
0.1
oCt
6%
Nov
9%
10%
DeC
11%
11%
1 1
SouThLAND
Weekly Southland largely reects what we see in the national section with an increase in the frequency of injuries occurring over the weekend. however, fatalities and people involved in Search and rescues had a more even spread throughout the week. This may be due to the prevalence of multiday tramps and hunting trips in Fiordland.
moN
tUe
WeD
thUR
FRI
SAt
SUN
12%
12%
12%
11%
12%
23%
18%
Injuries
17%
21%
13%
13%
15%
People involved in Search & Rescues
2
1
2
1
2
Fatalities
15%
5%
4
Public holidays easter weekend had the highest number of injuries for any public holiday in Southland with more than 3 times the national average occurring at that time.
2.32
SoUthlAND DAIly AveRAge non-PuBlic holidaY
1.67
1.43 0.82
0.64
0.88
1.30 0.83
Injuries
0.33
0.27
0.20 0.13
0.12
0.09 insights developed by the New zealand mountain Safety council - 2016
Christmas new Year period
Westland anniversary
labour weekend
Queen’s Birthday weekend
easter weekend
otago anniversary
Waitangi weekend
People involved in Search & Rescues
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who?
SoUthlAND ANNUAl INCIDeNtS
male
gender
ethnicity
1%
PaciďŹ c Island Nations
2% Asian
3% maori
ethnicity of people involved in a Search & Rescue
ethnicity of injuries
each data source represented ethnicity categorisation differently. Despite this, we can still see that injuries and Search and rescues overwhelmingly involved those of european (or caucasian) descent. in Southland over a third of the fatalities were Australians.
1.1
0.5
22
12
Fatalities
Fatalities
People involved in Search & Rescues
People involved in Search & Rescues
138
117
Injuries
2%
middle eastern
2% maori
3%
Injuries
Nationality of fatalities
Looking at the numbers side-by-side gives us insight into who is getting into trouble. The gender split of incidents in Southland is consistent with the national view of more males getting injured and involved in Search and rescues than females. worth noting is the percentage of female fatalities which is more than double the national average at 1 in every 3.
Female
other
4%
4
Australian
Not reported
8% other
5% Asian
8
New Zealander
87% 168
european
84% european
A closer look at the age of each person gives further insight into who got into trouble. in Southland, 35-49 year olds were over-represented in fatality data compared to any other age group.
SouThLAND
Age
10% of all PeoPle inJured in southland came from aucKland
SoUthlAND totAl INCIDeNtS
2,801 Age
Injuries
168
People involved in Search & Rescues
12
Fatalities
1%
2%
65-74
6%
10%
50-64
28%
26%
2
35-49
28%
24%
6
25-34
18%
15%
16-24
14%
20%
≤15
4%
75+
2 2
3%
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10%
home location of injuries All injured people provide a home address when submitting their Acc claim. The surrounding city districts of invercargill and Dunedin contributed just under twenty percent each. Surprisingly, Auckland contributed 10% of the total injuries in the Southland district which was larger than christchurch’s contribution at 6%.
Auckland Region
6%
Christchurch City
3%
Queenstown-lakes
19% Dunedin City
19% % Southland
18% %
Invercargill City
the maJoritY of incidents in southland involved tramPers
1 in 3 fatalities occurred in aPril
170
the numBer of PeoPle involved in search and rescues in this area decreased siGnificantlY
10% of all PeoPle inJured in southland came from aucKland
Southland
For every 1 fatality in Southland
21 161
people were involved in Search and Rescues
were injured.
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hotspot summary Where Auckland had the highest number of injuries. The Central North Island had the highest number of people involved in Search and Rescues. Mackenzie had the highest fatality rate. Queenstown-Lakes had the highest number of fatalities.
When Auckland incidents occurred all year round. All other hotspots had seasonal incident rates . In Queenstown-Lakes and Southland, Search and Rescues and fatalities had an even spread throughout the week. Incidents occurred more commonly over Easter weekend in Central North Island, Queenstown-Lakes and Southland. In Mackenzie, the Christmas-New Year period accounted for the highest number of people involved in Search and Rescues.
Who Nationally, 73% of fatalities were New Zealanders. In Mackenzie, only 25% were New Zealanders and another 25% were Australian. In Southland, Australians accounted for 4 of the 12 fatalities, the other 8 were New Zealanders. In Auckland and the Central North Island, 16-24 year olds were the group most likely to be involved in Search and Rescues. 47% of fatalities in Queenstown-Lakes were aged 16-24. 25-34 year olds were the most likely group to be involved in Search and Rescues in Mackenzie and Queenstown-Lakes, and accounted for half of all fatalities in Mackenzie. 35-49 year olds were the most common group injured in Auckland and accounted for 50% of the fatalities in Southland. Nationally, the highest rate of fatality was amongst 50-64 year olds.
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hoTSpoTS
Percentage of total incidents in the hotspot areas
Auckland
Southland
12.8%
12.0%
6.0% 2.5% 3.0% 1.0%
15.0%
4.3% 5.5%
Queenstown-Lakes
7.0%
0.7%
4.0%
15.0% 5.0%
Central North Island
12.0%
Injuries Mackenzie
People involved in Search and Rescues Fatalities
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Of the
5
outdoor recreation activities included in this project,
67,785 people didn’t return home without experiencing some form of incident, regardless of severity.
Each dot represents one of those people.
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The key insights we have found will help us make decisions for the future. Insights developed by the New Zealand Mountain Safety Council - 2016
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methodology Activities
Data sources
outdoor recreation is a broad category with many different types of recreation activities available ‘out of doors’. however, only a selection of these are relevant to the New zealand mountain Safety council (mSc). in order to narrow in on the outdoor recreation activities relevant to the mSc’s prevention-focused mandate we chose 5 activities which have a high number of participants and/or have a high proportional number of safety incidents. There are other activities relevant to the mSc, and these will be explored in the future.
The data used to create the infographics within this publication can be grouped into 4 main categories:
5
aCtiVities We eXplored:
tramping
Any walk where the intention is to be more than an hour away from the nearest road. includes day walks, overnight tramping and great walks.
mountaineering
Technical climbing in alpine areas. usually will require technical equipment that would not be needed when tramping. includes summer and winter mountaineering.
hunting
All recreational hunting of any game. Does not include fishing and trapping.
mountain Biking
mountain biking in remote locations on tracks which are also used for tramping, or may be specifically built for remote mountain biking such as rides included in Nga haerenga, The New zealand cycle Trail.
trail Running
running on tracks which are also used for tramping or day walks.
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• injuries • Search and rescues • Fatalities • participation.
The table below represents the specific date ranges for each incident type. As each data source covers a different length of time it is important to keep this in mind when viewing the information presented in this publication.
data range start
data range end
dataset time-frame
injury
2/01/2004
30/12/2014
11 years
search
1/07/2010
27/06/2015
5 years
Fatality
1/07/2007
31/12/2014
7.5 years
each data set has been supplied to the mSc by a partner organisation. The data supplied to the mSc has been handled in accordance with strict confidentiality and privacy standards. No identifiable personal information is contained within this publication. The following pages contain a breakdown of the datasets, how they’ve been acquired and the business rules we have created to ensure a consistent, repeatable methodology.
meThoDoLogY
Injuries Acc has supplied data relating to injury claims, through an ethics approval process. This data includes all claims from people who have received medical attention after their injury. regardless of the person’s nationality, if they received medical attention their claim is included, so this data represents all injury claims from both New zealanders and overseas visitors. The quality and frequency of relevant data increased materially from 2004-2006. Acc data may under-represent the true level of injury during this period
Business rules applied to the data Tramping All tramping injuries have been used without the need for any business rule application or data clean-up. Hunting All hunting injuries have been used without the need for any business rule application or data clean-up. Mountaineering mountaineering required a data cleanse, as it was common for Acc claims to specify mountaineering when the injury was clearly not sustained while mountaineering. This was achieved by reviewing the text fields in each claim. examples that were moved to other categories (such as tramping) or removed from the dataset included “climbing mt eden” and “walking up mt maunganui”. Trail Running Trail running is not a distinct category within the Acc injury claim data, therefore trail running injury claims are a subset of the total jogging injury claims (which are distinctly separate from all running injuries). in order to reduce the total number of running claims to more accurately represent trail running a key word search of the data was applied. This eliminated claims which mentioned words such as “road” and selected claims which mentioned words such as “bush”. Mountain Biking Although mountain Biking is a distinct category within the Acc data, mountain biking in urban locations and mountain bike parks is not of interest to mSc. in order to reduce the total number of mountain bike injury claims to more accurately represent mountain biking injuries relevant to the mSc a rural vs. urban approach was used. Using Statistics NZ classification of NZ Territorial Authorities, each Territorial Authority was identified as either predominantly urban or rural. Only injury claims resulting from Territorial Authorities that are predominantly rural were used. For example, injuries from Tauranga city were excluded while injuries from waitomo District were included. it is important to acknowledge that by removing urban Territorial Authorities from the data this approach will have eliminated some relevant injury claims while also including some non-relevant claims. The mSc discussed this approach with several partners, including Acc, and it was agreed that this approach was the best method to apply to the current data.
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Search and Rescues This dataset is provided by the New Zealand Search and Rescue Council (NZSAR). The NZSAR Data Store combines all the operational Search and Rescue data from NZ Police and the Rescue Co-ordination Centre (RCC) and includes all Search and Rescue operations regardless of who and how they were conducted (i.e. LandSAR volunteers, police personnel or direct helicopter extractions.)
Business rules applied to the data Not all Search and Rescue events are relevant to the MSC, for example water activities such as boating or swimming. We also removed data related to Natural Cause, Suicide and Mental Health. As Search and Rescue events do not always involve a single person, all multi-person events were isolated and analysed as a separate event for each person. This allowed for the important demographic information such as gender, age and ethnicity/nationality to be extracted for each person involved in the SAR event. Therefore the SAR data in this publication represents all people involved, not the number of SAR events.
Fatalities This data has been acquired through 2 sources: 1) Research-based access agreement with the National Coronial Information System (NCIS). The NCIS is an internet based data storage and retrieval system for Australian and New Zealand coronial cases. All closed coronial cases in NZ have been entered into the NCIS database since 1 July 2007. 2) Partnership with the NZ Coronial Services Unit, part of the Ministry of Justice, approved by the Chief Coroner. This includes both open and closed coronial cases.
Business rules applied to the data From the data provided, each Coronial case file was isolated and reviewed, with MSC staff checking each Coronial finding to ensure it met the relevant criteria. From this review, we removed any fatalities which were as a result of Natural Cause, Suicide or Intentional Homicide. Any fatalities involving a person/s engaged in the activity through a commercial operation, school excursion or an organised event were also extracted from the data set. Finally, all fatalities sustained in an urban area were removed.
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Participation Participation data used as part of this project was sourced from 4 data sets: • Sport NZ’s Active NZ Survey 2013/14 (domestic only) • Department of Conservation (domestic and international) • Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment’s (MBIE) International Visitor Survey (international only)
After reviewing all datasets and considering the methodologies used to obtain them, the Sport NZ Active NZ Survey data was selected as the most appropriate source of domestic participation data and the MBIE International Visitor Survey was selected as the most appropriate source of international participation data. To estimate how frequently New Zealanders and international visitors head outdoors, we used the MBIE Tourist Activity Profile - Nature Based Tourism Profile, from August 2009.
Business rules applied to the data Active NZ survey
This data was collected using specific questions identifying participation in outdoor recreation activities most closely aligned to the MSC’s mandate. For example, the Sport NZ Active NZ Survey classified tramping as a distinct category whereas the AC Nielson data combined both tramping and camping into one dataset. Participation figures for tramping, hunting and mountaineering were used without need for any business rule application or data clean-up. To identify a participation baseline for trail running and mountain biking (relevant to the MSC’s mandate) a business rule consistent with that used to identify injury data was applied. International Visitor Survey The visitor participation data from MBIE’s International Visitor Survey was used for the activities of Tramping, Hunting and Mountain Biking. Tourism NZ provided this data. Hunting did not require any business rules. Tramping was selected as a combined number of unique responses for the fields of ‘Walk Over 3 Hours Not Overnight’, ‘Trek/Tramp Including Overnight Stay’ and ‘A New Zealand Great Walk’. Mountain Biking was selected as the number of responses to ‘Cycle on the NZ Cycle Trail’. We were not able to add numbers for Trail Running as this is not an option in the survey. Mountaineering is an option, however this is combined with Rock Climbing, Abseiling and Caving into one dataset, so we could not refine this to be specific enough to include only Mountaineering.
wrap up Summary The complete dataset the MSC now sits across represents the most comprehensive collection of ‘what’s going wrong’ across 5 major outdoor recreation pursuits. Combined, this data represents a spectrum of incidents from minor in nature right through to serious fatal events, and everything in between. The true value of this data is evident when the individual elements are viewed as a whole, as they represent an actual snapshot, over many years, of exactly what has been occurring. The methodology description represents a commitment from the MSC to portray this knowledge, and the insights it has generated, in the most accurate manner possible. We have developed a consistent and repeatable method that can be used for ongoing insights analysis. The MSC will continue to update this information as new data becomes available. Most notably as time passes, additional data will add to the time periods covered, growing the dataset to span across many years. Additionally, the MSC will continue to present relevant findings to its partners and the public.
What should you do with this publication? We encourage you to read this publication and consider what the insights presented within it mean in the context of your organisation and/or operation. Many aspects of the insights presented here will be highly relevant to numerous parties, but will likely have varying meaning and possible implications. Please share this with your colleagues, family and friends. We encourage you to discuss this with the MSC, please contact us at info@mountainsafety.org.nz. We hope you find the content stimulating. No doubt some aspects will challenge preconceived ideas, and some will undoubtedly support what you already thought. We hope this publication achieves its intended purpose, to present a ‘state of the nation’ clearly outlining what’s been going wrong in the world of outdoor recreation safety, and sets a foundation for the work we do with partners.
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- Published 2016 made possible with the support of the following partners:
neW Zealand Mountain saFetY CounCil
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