For the second time this summer, North Shore Rescue fielded calls after a malfunction to Grouse Mountain Resort's Skyride tram prompted visitors to leave the resort on foot.
The rescue team received the first request for help at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday afternoon for a man in his 50s who was stranded three-quarters of the way up the BCMC Trail, said search manager Dave Barnett.
Suffering a fractured ankle and in a difficult spot to send a stretcher, the man had to be rescued via a Talon helicopter flight crew who lowered technicians in via a hoist, he said.
Once the man had been hoisted, technicians escorted him to the North Shore Rescue Capilano Gate base before transferring him to an ambulance.
Barnett, whose team was aided by Metro Vancouver Rangers and the District of North Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services, said the forested location of the challenging, 2.9-kilometre BCMC Trail make rescues in the area particularly difficult.
“It is a reasonably technical area when you’re hoisting people in heavy tree cover on a steep slope. We’re trained, and feel confident along with Talon, but it requires some pretty good skill of the pilot and training from our people,” he said. “If we couldn’t get an aircraft in, that’s a very long, uncomfortable stretch that would take a few hours to get that individual out. During that process, any number of people could get injured because of the steep terrain.”
The steep terrain certainly proved to be treacherous for several mountain goers on Saturday, with rescue teams fielding two to three other calls from distressed people on the BCMC trail while managing the first.
North Shore Rescue members were on standby for medical events that District of North Vancouver staff were managing – including one for a visitor who had a history of cardiac problems – should an aerial extraction be needed, he said. Luckily teams were stood down, but the situation highlighted just how quickly things can escalate when multiple unprepared walkers attempt a challenging hike, he said.
“All of this was related to some mechanical problems with the gondola. It was shut down and there were a lot of people that decided not to wait for it to resume operation and walk down, and that’s particularly dangerous, especially at night,” he said.
“It’s a steep, rooty, awkward trail, especially if you’re not equipped for it and you weren’t planning on hiking down.”
Barnett said he would encourage anyone in such a scenario to wait until the tram resumes operation. However, if they are inclined to descend on foot, the Grouse Grind is a safer alternative.
“Normally, Grouse wouldn’t want people walking down the Grind, but if there’s no choice of taking the gondola, it’s a better trail than the BCMC to descend.”
A Grouse Mountain spokesperson confirmed its Skyride tram stalled around 3 p.m. on Saturday following a fault in its operating system.
By 3:20 p.m., staff were able to switch to auxiliary power to get both tram cars back in-station and allow visitors on-board to disembark, they said.
“Following system testing and maintenance runs, we were able to start downloading guests once again at approximately 4 p.m. with no further issues. The mountaintop, including all facilities and activities, remained open and available to all guests during this time.”
The spokesperson said with the introduction of Grouse Mountain’s new gondola this coming winter, they are “excited to offer a more seamless experience” for guests.
Across the Canada Day long weekend, several hundred people were stranded atop Grouse Mountain following another breakdown of its tram. The closure, which lasted two days, caused a number of unprepared visitors to tackle the downhill trails in a bid to head home, resulting in multiple callouts to North Shore Rescue.
Mina Kerr-Lazenby is the North Shore News’ Indigenous and civic affairs reporter. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.
