From January to June 2021, Bulkley Valley Search and Rescue volunteers have responded to 11 incidents and participated in 50 training events and 70 administrative events. BVSAR is prepared to respond to our community 24/7, 365 days a year. We are 100% volunteer-run and operated and our services are always free.
Below is a round-up of stories from BVSAR call-outs from January to June 2021. These summaries provide a snap-shot of the incidences BVSAR volunteers have responded to in the past 6-months.
June
June 1 - BVSAR Swiftwater Team responded to a call for a kayaker in distress on the Bulkley River at Witset. An initial response team was prepped to fly by helicopter and the second team with a jet boat was en route to support. Teams stood down as all paddlers were safe.
MAY
May 28 - BVSAR was called to search for a missing female west of Smithers. The initial response swift water team was in the air when they were called off as the subject had been located.
April
April 26 - The public reported overturned watercraft on Lake Kathlyn. RCMP requested the BVSAR water response team to investigate. The boat appeared to have escaped from someone’s dock in a windstorm.
April 25 - BVSAR winter response team flew to the Onion to support the BC Ambulance Service after SOS Inreach messages were sent by a party of snowmobilers. The injured female snowmobiler was transported by helicopter to a waiting ambulance and taken to the hospital.
April 3 - BVSAR responded by helicopter to an injured snowmobiler on the Microwave. Quick action by the team allowed the injured subject to be located and transported to waiting BC Ambulance before the snowy weather came in.
March
March 14 - BVSAR was called out to a 15-year-old snowboarder that descended below the ski runs at Hudson Bay Mountain and became lost. Our winter response team used a combination of skis and snowmobiles to locate and return the subject to their family. The young person was prepared with extra clothing, food, a communication device, and a positive attitude.
January
January 30 - Two Swiftwater teams from BVSAR responded to an incident by helicopter and truck to the Bulkley River. Our teams were positioning themselves, but the incident was resolved by RCMP and our teams stood down without having to get in the water.
January 4 - Four members of BVSAR responded to a call out to assist BC Ambulance Service transport an injured skier on Hudson Bay Mountain. Members used our rescue sled to slide the subject without incident from their cabin down a groomed run to the waiting ambulance.
