Coquitlam Search and Rescue was called to assist Ridge Meadows SAR at 4:00AM on Wednesday, June 13th in the search for a missing 17 year old woman in the Mike Lake area of Golden Ears Provincial Park near Maple Ridge, British Columbia. The woman and her two dogs were reported missing in the early evening on June 12th when she used her cell phone to call for help. This launched a SAR operation that ended into the late afternoon the next day.

Ridge Meadows SAR searched through the night and their efforts were able to narrow the search area but they were unable to locate her in the rugged terrain and in the darkness. An RCMP helicopter was flown over the area, and the subject reported when the helicopter seemed loudest to her. This allowed Ridge Meadows to concentrate the search in that area.

When the subject was not found, mutual aid was called in for the next morning and Coquitlam SAR responded with 10 members. The first Coquitlam SAR team out after the sun came up was Richard Vurdella, Tristan Pratt and Team Leader Michael Coyle. They flew into the search area with Talon Helicopters and while searching for an area to land or at least perform a Hover Exit, they were able to locate the subject. Unable to land anywhere nearby, they dropped a stuff sack with clothing, food and a radio to her. She was able to warm up, have a bite to eat and communicate directly with the SAR teams. The search now moved into rescue mode.

The ground team in the area, made up of Rollie Webb (Coquitlam SAR), Gord Ferguson (North Shore Rescue) and Mary (Ridge Meadows SAR), was able to redeploy and quickly start moving towards the subject. From the time of first contact by the helicopter to the time with subject was approximately 1 hour. Once with the subject and her dogs, the team led her and the dogs back out to the main trail where Coquitlam's Argo ATV was waiting to pick up the group.

The subject was brought back to her mom and both were very relieved the ordeal was over. After a quick interview with the SAR Manager and the media, the subject was on her way home.

It should be noted that this was the first SAR operation for both Mary from Ridge Meadows SAR and Kelsey from Talon Helicopters. They were both excited to be part of the successful outcome.

It's also important to mention that without her cell phone, this subject would have been much harder to locate, and the chances of being spotted from a helicopter in BC's coast mountains is very small. This subject was also lucky to have two ogs with her to keep warm, and she also carried a whistle (one of the 10 Essentials, which greatly assisted the searcher to locate her.