Emergency crews were summoned to the BCMC Trail late Friday afternoon after a hiker took a fall and was unable to complete the trek.
District of North Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services and Metro Vancouver Park Rangers responded to a call at approximately 4:10 p.m. that a woman in her 70s had fallen around the halfway marker of the BCMC Trail, located just east of the Grouse Grind, and injured her hip. The woman’s partner, who was hiking with her when the incident occurred, proceeded to contact rescue services.
“[She] was unable to make her way out under her own power,” said North Vancouver District fire Chief Brian Hutchinson.
After arriving on scene, emergency crews packaged the woman up and carried her down the rest of the trail. The whole operation took around three-and-a-half hours, according to Hutchinson. “With fading light, and there was some rain throughout that period of time as well,” he said. “The conditions were not ideal for undertaking a trail rescue, but we got her out.”
After reaching the base of Grouse Mountain with the injured hiker, emergency crews handed her over to waiting paramedics.
Hutchinson emphasized the importance of preparedness when it comes to outdoor recreation this time of year.
“What we do notice is that we’re transitioning into the fall period where our light conditions start to change, our temperatures are changing,” he said. “It’s really about people being prepared for the environment that they’re going out into.”
