A 38-year-old South Okanagan man is recovering in hospital from hypothermia after spending a chilly night trapped on the side of a canyon in the Wiltse area of Penticton.
Hamish Reidie, search manager with Penticton and District Search and Rescue (PENSAR), said the hiker slipped and fell down a steep embankment before clutching a tree for safety.
“He was new to town and had gone out for a late evening hike on Saturday night. He’d gone up into the Wiltse area and got himself terrain trapped,” Reidie said.
“He spent the evening hugging a tree and calling out for help.”
A neighbour across the canyon, who happens to be a former search and rescue member, heard the injured man’s cries for help and contacted Penticton RCMP.
While an officer was able to make visual contact with the subject, police were unable to reach the man by foot due to the rugged terrain and creek running through the area.
RCMP requested the assistance of PENSAR and 15 members were deployed to the scene.
The Helicopter External Transport Team (HETS) performed the dramatic long-line rescue on Sunday afternoon, around 12 hours after the man became stuck in the canyon.
A long-line rescue involves a rescuer being attached to the bottom of a long-line and being slung to a rescue site. This allows the pilot to insert the rescuer into most types of terrain.
“We were able to get the helicopter up and insert members with the tech system and evacuate a 38-year-old male suffering from hypothermia and minor injuries,” Reidie said.
“He didn’t have appropriate footwear and when our crew flew into him they had to anchor in to keep themselves stable so he had slid himself down to a position where he couldn’t go down and he couldn’t get back up.”
Paramedics performed an on-scene assessment and determined the hiker did not suffer from any life-threatening injuries or broken bones, although he was very cold.
He was transferred to Penticton Regional Hospital by BC Ambulance.