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Thread: Swiss tourist rescued in remote slot canyon

  1. #1

    Swiss tourist rescued in remote slot canyon

    Arizona Sun
    ERIC BETZ, February 22, 2012

    A 35-year-old Swiss tourist was rescued from a remote slot canyon 3 miles south of Page on Monday after spending three cold nights and two days trapped there.

    The man had rappelled into a Colorado River tributary called Water Holes Canyon using a short length of rope at about noon on Friday and couldn't climb back out after he suffered an ankle injury, according to the Page Fire Department.

    The man had no camping equipment with him and suffered severe rope burns as he tried to climb out with the injured ankle.

    With no cell phone service, he used a number of ropes he found in the canyon and attempted to continue descending in hopes of reaching the Colorado River. But he was thwarted when he reached a 400-foot drop, the Coconino County Sheriff's Office said.

    The rescue effort was initiated when his car was discovered parked nearby on Highway 89 after his wife in Zurich, Switzerland, reported him as a missing person.

    County Search and Rescue sent three people into the canyon to contact the man and give him warm fluids and clothing. He was then transported to the rim and taken to Page Hospital and later FMC for treatment.

    The Sheriff's office said 21 responders were involved, requiring 215 hours, six vehicles, two UTVs and a helicopter.

    http://azdailysun.com/news/local/swiss-tourist-rescued-in-remote-slot-canyon/article_26c8cfda-b35b-59a1-b578-71088859cddb.html#ixzz1oIAndv6v

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  3. #2
    The Sheriff's office said 21 responders were involved, requiring 215 hours, six vehicles, two UTVs and a helicopter.
    That seems like a lot of resources in man power. Does anyone know if that is typical for this sort of search and rescue operation? Glad he is doing well.

    Ken

  4. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by spinesnaper View Post
    That seems like a lot of resources in man power. Does anyone know if that is typical for this sort of search and rescue operation? Glad he is doing well.

    Ken
    21 responders at 10 hours each? 4 hours travel time each person and 6 hours rescue + debriefing. Seems normal based on ramping up for an unknown situation?

  5. #4
    Bo

    Thanks for the insight.

    Ken

  6. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by spinesnaper View Post
    Bo

    Thanks for the insight.

    Ken
    After spending almost on 16 years now with Zion N.P. SAR, all situations vary. Keep in mind that Coconino SAR is comprised of various entities including volunteers that are mainly based out of Flagstaff. SAR's begin with RP's info. which in this case was a wife in Switzerland (little known except general locale) I.C. assessment and then a callout to available responders. It takes time to gather available resources, then comes a briefing. Initial response might be a couple folks dispatched to the scene to assess the situation. I personally don't know if initial contact could have been made promptly, but many times initial contact can only be made by a hasty team (technical) and then it might be determined as to resources needed? Meanwhile the remainder of the gathered team might have been dispatched to the scene. Whether it required all human resources to extract the victim (patient) is not generally known. If the operation required multiple raises, then the team may have been split into multiple teams, or if the extraction was just a single raise then maybe there were more responders than were really needed? The point being that without knowing exact resource needs it's important to have all available resources on scene rather than having to call in more later with a long time lapse and risk running the operation in darkness. I do know that in Zion we often will have an initial callout to 10-20 potential team members, and only 6-8 might be immediately available. There is a list of potential responders that are more or less separated into qualifications. Technical, qualified riggers, and load carriers and haulers. Certain times of the year availibility fluctuates, but unknown technical situations generally gets "A", "B", and "C" teams all called out, and then if required there might be a "stand down" of certain resources.
    Last edited by Bo_Beck; 03-06-2012 at 04:45 AM. Reason: additions

  7. #6
    This was posted on anther website.

    Water Holes Rescue

    Here is an accident report from my (rescuer) perspective. Please understand that details often come from several sources.
    The subject was a Swiss national who had planned to downclimb the first rappel/downclimg (threaded pin) and check out the narrows. He did not plan a through trip. He entered the canyon sometime on Friday.

    He was equipped with a hydration pack, tennis shoes, lightweight hiking pants, cotton t-shirt, fleece jacket, and beanie. He had a rope of unknown length. He heard about the canyon from a friend who recommended it. He obtained a permit from the Navajo Nation.

    After downclimbing the first obstacle (first after the car wreck) he injured his ankle somewhere in the narrows between there and the pot room rappel. The exact location was not determined. He was unable to climb back up due to his hurt ankle. He had fixed his rope on the pin to aid in his climb, and was therefore unable to retrieve it.

    He continued back down canyon searching for a way out (there is an escape route very close to that first downclimb). He assumed any rappels would have fixed lines; he had no canyoneering experience. He managed to find another rope and used it to do the next few rappels (the details here are unknown). He sustained significant rope burns to his hands in the process, in addition to his injured ankle.

    The timeframe of his progress is unclear, as he was in the canyon until Monday morning around noon. He made it to the bottom of last rappel before the last escape route (60’ sloper with two bolts on the right wall). He stayed between this spot (there was water which he drank) and the escape route. He remained in this stretch of the canyon.

    It is noteworthy that over the course of his time in the canyon, he scribed “help” into the rock at several locations with the date.

    He stayed warm by stuffing leaves and other debris up his shirt and down his pants.

    He was supposed to fly out of Vegas on Saturday to Washington DC. When he failed to make his flight, his wife and brother began calling the US Consulate and the hotel where he stayed in Page. It is unclear (to me) how the information was relayed to Coconino County Sheriff’s Office. A deputy found his rental car parked at the bridge over the canyon sometime in the early morning of Monday the 20th of February. The SAR coordinator was contacted, while the deputy along with a DPS officer made their way along the canyon rim, yelling for the subject.

    At 0418hrs on 2/20 a callout was made to all technical rescue and general SAR personnel to respond to the SAR building. Approximately 10 SAR members responded. Flagstaff DPS ranger was called in early, and responded to the canyon around 0830hrs. The SAR members, equipped with technical rescue gear, one four-wheeler, a Ranger UTV with mattrax, and three trucks, departed the building around 0530hrs.

    En route to the canyon, Page Fire Department was requested to assist in the event of a litter operation. The National Parks Service was contacted for possible use of their boat at Lees Ferry, in the event that the subject was below the long rappel. National Parks Service offered to send their technical rescue personnel, they were asked to stand by.

    The deputy, and DPS officer who were hiking the rim, made voice contact with the subject around 0630hrs. This information was relayed to SAR personnel along with coordinates of his approximate location (12S 453370 4078056, WGS84). The location is approximately

  8. #7
    who pays for the SAR services?

    i was told once that since it is a national park the government pays for everything...

    sorry for the noob question...

  9. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by carspidey View Post
    who pays for the SAR services?
    Here is a pretty good article on the subject:
    http://www.bogley.com/forum/showthread.php?23559

    But the short answer to you question is that tax payers usually cover the cost of SAR. But most SAR agencies reserve the right to bill the victim.

  10. #9
    Zions the "s" is silent trackrunner's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by carspidey View Post
    i was told once that since it is a national park the government pays for everything...
    i don't think water holes is NPS managed land. I believe it is Navajo BIA land.

  11. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by carspidey View Post
    who pays for the SAR services?

    i was told once that since it is a national park the government pays for everything...

    sorry for the noob question...
    Not necessarily. Don't ask for a ride from the guts of G.C. Helicopter rides will set you back a pretty penny. Different parks have different policies.

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