Contributed by Kat Robinson, General Duty Policing/Media Relations Officer, Golden-Field RCMP
The Golden-Field RCMP responded to 2 backcountry SOS activations this week. One involved a fatal snowmobile incident, and the other resulted in the safe extraction of 2 backcountry skiers.
On January 21, 2024, around 5 p.m. MST, the Golden-Field RCMP received an emergency SOS activation from a Zoleo device in a backcountry area near Frigate Mountain in Donald, BC.
Six snowmobilers were heading back to the Hope Creek Snowmobile Staging Area after a day of sledding when one left the trail down a steep embankment and hit some trees.
Regrettably, the 24-year-old man died on impact. His friends called for help, and the Golden-Field RCMP activated the Golden Area District Search and Rescue team.
The area was so remote that it took the team several hours to arrive by land. The deceased man was extracted and transferred to the BC Coroners Service at approximately 1 a.m.
The RCMP investigated alongside the BC Coroners Service, who have now taken over the investigation.
The group was very well prepared for their backcountry adventure; they had all the right gear, and they were experienced riders. Even with all these measures in place, sometimes things still go wrong, states Constable Kat Robinson, Media Relations Officer for the Golden-Field RCMP. “We are lucky to have such a skilled Search and Rescue team that accessed this remote location the same night and provided some closure for the young man’s family.”
On January 22, 2024, at approximately 4 p.m. MST, the Golden-Field RCMP received an emergency activation on a Spot device mapping to Emerald Peak in Yoho National Park.
A call was placed to Banff Parks Dispatch, and a Parks Canada Mountain Safety Specialists team was deployed. The team attempted to send a helicopter before it got dark, but unfortunately, they got fogged in.
The Mountain Safety Specialist team sent a search party by land and found 2 backcountry skiers, both 25-year-old men, stranded on a cliff and unable to continue.
The team extracted one skier that night, and some search and rescue members remained and set up camp on the mountain with the second skier overnight.
