‘It’s amazing’: Pair of women lost on Quadra Island for 2 days rescued safely

It was a happy ending Friday for two women, lost on Quadra Island since Wednesday.

The pair, aged 69 and 71, were last seen walking a dog on the island’s north end.

Paul Berry with Comox Search and Rescue said the duo had set out from their home on the island around 3:15 p.m., on what was meant to be an hour-long walk.

When they didn’t return, a search was mounted on Thursday morning, with numbers of rescue volunteers climbing to about 90 people on Friday.

“It’s amazing. We had searchers here from Victoria, the Cowichan Valley, from Parksville, Campbell River, Port Alberni, and even the west coast,” said Michael Mascall, a friend of the missing women.

“Their help was amazing, and they just went over the area thoroughly.”

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Early Friday afternoon, that effort was rewarded when the pair were found.

“We’ve got a fire going, we’re warming them, getting them food and water. We’re awaiting a helicopter and we’re going to conduct a long-line rescue to take them out of the drainage and deliver them to BC Ambulance for assessment,” Berry said on Friday.

According to Mascall, the pair had taken a wrong turn on a trail, and ended up lost in a ravine.

He said when they learned where the women had been located, friends and neighbours weren’t surprised.

“We walked into the lake where they did their walk and we could see how you could get disoriented, particularly late in the day when there’s not much light,” he said.

“You can just lose the path and take the wrong one, and it’s not much at the time but it leads out to a totally different place.”

While it was a cold and wet two nights for the missing women, the pair came out of the backcountry with no serious injuries.

They were greeted by hugs and cheers from a Quadra Island community grateful for their return, and celebrating a successful rescue.