Skip to content

Search and rescue aids in hiker rescue

Man believed to be in his 70s got separated from hiking companions and was found quite cold
8814798_web1_170814-BPD-VERNONSAR
Vernon Search and Rescue’s helicopter team helped rescue a hiker suffering from being extremely cold near The Rise Golf Course Thursday morning. (VSAR file photo)

Vernon Search and Rescue’s helicopter winch was called to assist an extremely cold elderly hiker near Vernon Thursday morning.

VSAR received a call to assist B.C. Ambulance in locating the man, believed to be local and in his 70s, near The Rise Golf Course off Bella Vista Road shortly after 8 a.m.

“The fellow called 911 himself,” said VSAR spokesperson Leigh Pearson. “He had been out for an early morning hike with two friends when he got separated and lost his way.

“It was very cold, temperatures were below freezing.”

The man was found about 300 metres from the golf course.

“He wasn’t doing very well. He was quite cold,” said Pearson, who could not say if the man had been dressed for the cold weather. “We were asked to provide our helicopter, which we did. The man was flown from the site to the Vernon Airport, and an ambulance transported him from there to Vernon Jubilee Hospital.”

It’s believed the man had been out for a couple of hours when he got separated from his companions.