Squamish SAR seeing jump in calls as warm weather winds down

Outdoor enthusiasts may be trying to hang on to any last moments of summer, but as a result, one local search and rescue team says it’s seeing an increase in rescues.

Squamish Search and Rescue tells 1130 NewsRadio it has responded to roughly 110 to 115 calls so far this year. The most recent one coming Sunday for an injured mountain biker, who was able to walk out with some help.

Search Manager B.J. Chute says as the temperatures begin to drop as fall creeps upon us, he’s pleading with people to be prepared.

“The weather is constantly changing. It’s colder. It’s wetter and it’s darker as well. So, we really want to encourage people to be more prepared as they pursue some of these activities by carrying extra layers, an emergency blanket, and certainly a headlamp.”

He adds as the weather starts to turn, it becomes increasingly harder for crews to use a helicopter.

“We’ve seen a lot of technical rescues this year, as well as our typical injuries. The majority of our injuries are somewhat minor in nature with broken arms or legs, lacerations, but as well as people getting lost in some of the trails.”

Chute believes the vast majority of people who venture out are properly equipped.

“However, we know there are people that do need to spend some more time on preparation, and they need to spend some more time researching the weather, researching the areas in which they are going to recreate.”

One misconception, Chute explains, is the team gets less busy during the late fall months and winter, as people tend to spend more time on the North Shore.

“Frankly, we don’t have a ski hill in our area that attracts the same types of people as the North Shore or the Interior. But again, the cause of concern would be the severity of those calls and hypothermia,” he explained.

“When we see people going out in the fall, there’s less daylight as I mentioned. The weather is colder, and we will see an increase in patients that are hypothermic. I think that can be mitigated through a little bit of preparation.”

Chute doesn’t know why but says at the moment, the majority of the calls are coming mid-week.

“We are one of the busier search and rescue teams in the province and it does cause concern, but it makes us continually look to improve ourselves and continually look for new members and do we have enough members going out on calls and training costs and all sorts of things with the increase in call volume.”

He adds its members are prepared to be called out to assist other teams as the weather begins to turn.