In Conversation With... head of local search and rescue group
Lost hikers, snowmobilers with broken-down machines, stranded rock climbers — you name a backwoods distress call, and Central Okanagan Search and Rescue has dealt with it.
As part of our ongoing In Conversation With feature, reporter Ron Seymour spoke with group president Ephraim Nowak about his involvement with a volunteer organization whose members are often called to get out of a warm bed on a cold night and assist strangers in trouble.
COURIER: What’s the most amusing rescue you’ve ever been involved in (no names required)?
NOWAK: That’s a tough question to answer, as we take all our rescues seriously. The one task that comes to mind was for a mountain biker that became separated from his group on Little White Mountain and was reported overdue. We were close to losing daylight, so we flew a crew to the mountain by helicopter and located the subject’s friends. When the RCMP pinged the subject’s cellphone a few hours later, it showed up in a casino in Penticton. Apparently, he had turned his phone off and made his way back without telling anybody. Our crew spent all night hiking out because the helicopter couldn’t pick them up.
COURIER: Is winter the busiest time for your group in terms of lost/overdue snowmobilers and skiers, or are the calls for help spread out fairly evenly throughout the year?
NOWAK: COSAR is busy year-round with an average of 50 calls per year, and we don’t see any particular season with increased call volume. During the winter, we are typically called to search for overdue snowmobile riders and lost snowboarders and skiers. Throughout the rest of the year, we tend to see medical rescues for injured mountain bikers, hikers and hunters, among others. Our organization also assists the RCMP with urban searches for walkaways from care facilities and supports the community during emergencies such as floods and fires.
COURIER: What are three simple and effective tips that are often overlooked by people heading out to the backcountry?
NOWAK: Prepare to stay for 24 hours, even if you’re simply planning a day hike. Take “the essentials” and file a trip plan (AdventureSmart is an excellent resource for this: www.adventuresmart.ca). Call 911 and request search and rescue immediately if someone is overdue or injured in the backcountry; there is no minimum wait time, and we don’t charge for rescues.
Charging for rescues would go against what we volunteer to do: to save lives.
Ephraim Nowak
COURIER: Why did you get involved in search and rescue?
NOWAK: I was asked to join COSAR when the team established its boat crew on Okanagan Lake, as I had previous experience operating underwater search equipment including sonar, remote operated vehicles and towed cameras. When the group ran the next ground search and rescue course, I signed up, and things snowballed from there.
COURIER: Is it hard to find enough volunteers? Has Search and Rescue ever been in danger of folding for lack of volunteers?
NOWAK: With a large population base in the Central Okanagan, we have been able to attract some excellent members. When numbers start to get low, we rely more on our community partners, such as the Kelowna Snowmobile Club, which helps us on a lot of searches in the winter. We have seen a lot of interest in our group, and have been able to attract members who understand that SAR is a huge time commitment and requires a certain stability in life to commit to.
COURIER: When a call for help comes in at, say, 2:32 a.m. on a cold February morning, isn’t it tempting to just stay in bed?
NOWAK: Yes, it can be tempting to stay in bed, but then you realize that there is someone out there that needs your help. Even if it’s an urban search, we realize that hypothermia is a killer and minutes count.
COURIER: What skills or abilities do potential search and rescue volunteers need to bring to the organization?
NOWAK: Most of our members are outdoor enthusiasts themselves and are looking to help their community. We look for people with the right attitude to be able to work on a team, and teach specialized skills from there. The ability to reschedule one’s plans at a moment’s notice is also important, and we look for members with employer and family support for their SAR participation.
COURIER: Do you think the time will ever come when people who are saved from some misadventure will be expected to pay for their rescue?
NOWAK: The SAR community in B.C. is united on the stance that we don’t charge for rescues. The reason is that people who are afraid of having to pay for a rescue tend to delay calling help and try to find the injured party themselves. This puts the subject, family, friends and our SAR volunteers at greater risk. Our members are properly trained and equipped; we prefer to be called out early and have to turn around rather than being called too late. The B.C. provincial SAR program is extremely effective and costs taxpayers very little (less than a single small municipal fire department). Charging for rescues would go against what we volunteer to do: to save lives.