Missing travellers found safe after 2 days on the land
Pair stranded between Taloyoak and Kugaaruk; officials urge use of GPS devices for safe travel
Two travellers are safe at home after they were reported missing May 16. The pair were travelling between. Taloyoak and Kugaaruk. (File photo by Dustin Patar, special to Nunatsiaq News)
Two travellers reported missing while en route from Kugaaruk to Taloyoak are safely home in Taloyoak, the Department of Community Services confirmed Tuesday.
Ground search-and-rescue teams reached the pair Sunday after they were spotted earlier in the day by an aircraft at 12:10 p.m. local time, a public service announcement from Nunavut Emergency Management on Sunday said.
The travellers were assessed on site and found to be unharmed, said Kathryn Devereaux, communications manager with the department, in an email. They were transported home the same day.
The plane, which maintained contact with the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre — run by the Canadian Coast Guard and Royal Canadian Air Force — dropped supplies and a radio to the pair and remained in the area until ground crews arrived.
Devereaux didn’t say how far the two were from Taloyoak when they were found.
The pair had been missing since May 16, prompting a co-ordinated search effort involving Nunavut Emergency Management, the RCMP, Canadian Armed Forces, hamlet officials and community volunteers.
How they became stranded remains under investigation, Devereaux said. She declined to release their identities to protect their privacy.
“We are deeply relieved that the two individuals have been found safe,” said David Akeeagok, Nunavut’s community services minister, in a statement provided by the department in which he thanked the searchers.
“Because of their quick action and co-ordinated efforts, the individuals returned home. That is the best outcome we could hope for,” Akeeagok said.
In a public service announcement Sunday, Nunavut Emergency Management reminded people to sign out a free satellite-based tracking device from a local hamlet office, wildlife office or hunters and trappers organization before travelling on the land.
These devices allow users to send signals and share their location in emergencies, even without cellphone service.
Another example of two fools who didn’t need GPS devices because they are experienced and know the land very well?
We can still travel without GPS you know so you try it!
Things have been invented/created to make hunting easier e.g. rifles, boats, snowmobiles, those are easily used by hunters nowadays, is it a ego thing that you dont NEED GPS to travel? dont need it til you need it right? and FYI before you say i know nothing im white, i am inuk
GPS is a good thing but only relying on one is also a problem as GPS can fail (or the ice and snow conditions are not shown on GPS). it is still good to get knowledge of the area you are going. but if you have been somewhere and have a track to follow even in white out conditions you can still follow your way home… if you need to, though if it is bad enough just wait for the weather to get better and let family know your safe through the Spot.
Im not saying soley relying on GPS to travel, im saying it should always be carried along with the free to use SPOT devices provided by the communities, weather can be beautiful blue skies one minute and completely change the next, It is better to have it and not need it and need it and not have it is all im saying
I think we agree.
I dont want people going out thinking that since they have a GPS they can go where ever they want and they will be fine. there is so much more to it.
The cost of search and rescue is taken for granted, its high, think of what a short charter flight costs and then consider how much more air time these planes have searching for multiple days. Not to mention ground, which for the most part are volunteer up here but still gas and other consumables are usually covered.
SPOT devices are free for use now. There’s zero excuses for not having one except laziness and ego. I get not everyone can afford an inreach, the base cost is expensive but SPOT devices are readily available for free use because the cost of lending them out is far less than the cost to municipalities when they have to fund a full search and rescue with no idea where people are. A clear cost benefit.
The big caveat though is that people actually need to take one and use it. It’s a great little free program people just have to use it!
Yep. The lack of a SPOT or something similar a year ago turned what would have been an inconvenience where they’d have to wait for a few hours for someone to run out and pick them up after they broke down into a multi-week search where one was lucky to survive and be found after over a week and the other’s body has never been found.
And even worse is when search and rescue is needed to bring out gas (everything else is fine they just didnt plan). Hunters need to be able to think about how much there skidoo or boat is going through gas and know when they need to head back to town or use a spot to ask a family or friend to bring out gas. NOT SEARCH AND RESCUE.
Search and Rescue is meant for if you are hurt and need assistance or possibly if the weather has been bad for so long that you might be running out of food and need a resupply and the weather is still not safe for the average family member to just go help. but again that would be a few days past the point you thought you would be out. and you should have a Spot or inreach and be in communication so it is not an emergency it is just that you need help soon.
With all that we have now, it should be mandatory for travelers to carry a device that can signal an emergency call with a locator. It’s not only costly to be without a spot device or communication device, but it puts the volunteers and search and rescue members lives at risk. They have families at home, too. The goal is always to minimize the risk as much as possible. Spare skidoo belt, in-reach, longer supply of food than expected duration. The land and ice is dangerous and unpredictable. Not only is the people that are lost in danger, so are the dozens of people looking for them. I’d hate to have that on my conscience knowing if I had a device where I can easily press a button and be located, for them to know exactly where to go, than to not have one and have these people out looking for me and they lose their lives or are hurt badly.