After a harrowing night and then a rescue on the Forbidden Plateau in mid-August, a fundraiser has been launched to give back to Comox Valley Search and Rescue and find them a permanent home.
Thierry Vrain was out for a hike to Mt. Becher with his wife Chanchal Cabrera and others on Aug. 14. It’s an annual hike for them to “make sure they are still young.”
Despite having done the trail multiple times, Vrain said a small detour led him astray and before long, he was lost on the side of Boston Canyon and unable to locate his group.
As he tried to work his way down to a lake, he fell and injured his back. Tired and dehydrated, the 77-year-old says he decided to stay in one place on the very steep and difficult to access terrain, wondering if anyone knew of his predicament.
“I just laid there and just wasn’t sure if I would be found and that would be the end of that,” said Vrain. “Two or three hours later I did see a helicopter go around, probably looking for me, and I was waiving my blue bag and they found me.
As it turned out, about 10 minutes after Vrain went off the trail Cabrera and the group found out that he was not with them. After being unable to locate him, the group returned to the parking lot at Forbidden Plateau and called Comox Valley Search and Rescue.
“They took about an hour to get to us and then it was all stations, it was choppers coming in and dogs and lots of people in high-vis vests,” said Cabrera.
Cabrera says they kept the group updated and when they initially found Vrain, they would not be able to get to him that night.
He was rescued the following day after a cold night and was taken to the hospital to be given fluids and help with his recovery. He was discharged after eight hours and has been resting since.
Cabrera says the experience highlighted the need for search and rescue especially in places where there are so many outdoor activities. However, it really hit home when she found out CVSAR does not have a permanent facility.
“It was such a wakeup for us about what search and rescue do and who they are, and they are our neighbours and friends,” said Cabrera. “They’re just folks like you and I who volunteer their time on top of their day jobs and do extremely rigorous training and activities and put themselves in danger to help other people.
“So, when we realized that they are volunteers and they are self-funding and in this community,, they also must fund for rent, we were like ‘this is really not good. This is really not acceptable.’”
According to CVSAR, they have fundraised over $600,000 towards getting a permanent facility, which they estimate to cost anywhere between $1.2 million and $1.5 million. However, they are the only search and rescue organization on the Island paying rent for a building, and they require land to build the new facility.
To give back to the efforts of CVSAR, Vrain and Cabrera will be holding a fundraiser event on Sept. 5 at 3636 Trent Road from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. They say they are aiming to raise at least $5,000 for the group, with Vrain matching donations but the more raised, the better.
“There will be some music, there will be some food and refreshments, there will be a silent auction,” said Cabrera.
“Search and rescue are going to come and do a talk and a show and tell about their activities, what they do and what we can do.”
She adds the silent auction will stay on for another week on the Innisfree Farm website. A link to register for the event can be found here.
