Use caution with locator beacons

Comments on Topix forums : The locator device that alerted rescuers to a lost hiker this week in the Shining Rock Wilderness Area is gaining in popularity among outdoors enthusiasts as one way to call for help ...

[Keith retired Gun-bunny]

Reckin a person will need to read the instructions that comes along with locator beacons, that is ifin they ain't illiterate.

[local]

I also recon that the weak link in the process is the resucuers. According to the reports, it took S&R teams 10 hours to go 1.5 miles up the trail from Camp Daniel Boone...Good thing the kid was just mistaken and not really injured.

One of the things these new PLBs can do is shine a bright light on outdated and slow reaction times for S&R teams.

[retiredlawman]

Why do we send rescue crews for these people in the first place?

[Better Journalism]

Nice follow-up story, adding depth to a minor news item; good local interest. More of these, please, instead of so many "arrest blotter" items.

[yona]

All that is well and good, until tomorrow when hikers go missing and search teams can't find them. Then we will be hearing long winded rhetoric on the benefit of having locator beacon, and how great it would be if every hiker carried one just in case.

You can't have it both ways. Either we want people to carry them, and even if it turns out to be an unnessisary rescue, so be it. Or we discourage the use of them and accept the lose of hikers and campers in the wilderness.

[Duh-huh]

local wrote:

I also recon that the weak link in the process is the resucuers. According to the reports, it took S&R teams 10 hours to go 1.5 miles up the trail from Camp Daniel Boone...Good thing the kid was just mistaken and not really injured.
One of the things these new PLBs can do is shine a bright light on outdated and slow reaction times for S&R teams.

youre welcome to sign up seeing as you can do better.
leave your name and number and the next time theres a search we'll gladly stick your nose to the ground .

[Grizzled old backpacker]

"I will give up my locator beacon when they pry my cold dead fingers from around it" Wait a minute! That's my GUN! I don't OWN a locator beacon.
I think they're a bad idea due to "overreactionaries". There are probably some people will "mash them buttons" for chapped lips.

Just simply hike with a friend or group, or don't go alone until you have BEEN hiking the area with friends or groups and KNOW your area.

Or take a flare gun.

[local]

retiredlawman wrote:

Why do we send rescue crews for these people in the first place?

Why would we send an ambulance to your house if you slipped and broke your hip?

[local]

Duh-huh wrote:

<quoted text>
youre welcome to sign up seeing as you can do better.
leave your name and number and the next time theres a search we'll gladly stick your nose to the ground .

that's not actually an answer to the question. I've taken part in many SAR operations in Colorado and California...It's never taken 10 hours to get organised once alerted. The SPOT gave you a UTM coordinate at 6:45am and called 911 immediately...

What happened during those 10 hours?

[Geria]

Just like cell telephones and the GPS units before them, satellite trackers could make people take unnecessary risks in the wilderness because they believe the devices will save them, outdoor experts say.
And, calling for help when it is not truly an emergency puts rescue workers, who are often volunteers, at risk, Wolf said.

Just apply the same law and rules of the 911 system. One should have to pay the cost of their rescue within reason.

[local]

Geria wrote:

Just apply the same law and rules of the 911 system. One should have to pay the cost of their rescue within reason.

I agree

[local]

local wrote:

I also recon that the weak link in the process is the resucuers. According to the reports, it took S&R teams 10 hours to go 1.5 miles up the trail from Camp Daniel Boone...Good thing the kid was just mistaken and not really injured.
One of the things these new PLBs can do is shine a bright light on outdated and slow reaction times for S&R teams.

This local isn't me. I guess I'll have to change my name.

[MurphyMobile]

local wrote:

<quoted text>
Why would we send an ambulance to your house if you slipped and broke your hip?

That is a true emergency.

Hikers out of respect to family, friends and rescue
personnel should leave an itnerary with a trusted person with an estimated time of returning.

So many times rescuers are sent out on situations when they could be better used in another situation.

If someone does not want to be found, then that is their decision. But just watch the panic in family and friends when someone tries calling them or visiting.

[retiredlawman]

It's kind of like women buying Volvos and then driving like maniacs thinking they can't be injured.

[Duh-huh]

local wrote:

<quoted text>
that's not actually an answer to the question. I've taken part in many SAR operations in Colorado and California...It's never taken 10 hours to get organised once alerted. The SPOT gave you a UTM coordinate at 6:45am and called 911 immediately...
What happened during those 10 hours?

this area is not colorado and its definitely california . as i said maybe you should call and ask the person who headed this and offer your expertise oh wise one. you may learn a few things about the differences.

[Daniel P from Long Island]

But this guy used a SPOT beacon and NOT a PLB and there IS a difference ! The SPOT has a LOT of drawbacks and can certainly lead to a false sense of security. I first read about the SPOT device in Popular Science about a year ago and was all set to buy one when i found out a few disheartening facts about them:

1. There is NO feedbac, meaning that if you activate the device, there is NO way to tell if the signal was sent, if it was received, or if help is on the way.

2. They are NOT 100% effective in wooded areas (where a lot of people hike and camp [see "Brokeback Mountain"]), and thus may NOT be able to send a signal requesting help.

3. They use a private network, and NOT a government network that's always monitored.

Thus, I decided NOT to buy one for the above-stated reasons.

If you REALLY want one of these, thorougly research what you are buying and it's capabilities, because your life may very well depend on it.

Also, people DO go missing suddenly even when surrounded by family and friends.

Look up the recent stories of Garrett Bardsley who disappeared while camping with his father, and also Brennen Hawkins who disappeared near where Garrett Bardsley disappeared. He was also amongst friends.

Fortunately, Brennen Hawkins WAS found alive after being lost for 4 days in the woods.

[local]

Daniel is correct...the SPOT is very different from a traditional PLB and a traditional SAT phone...

I would be interested in a story that delved into why there was such a lag in response time...Was it because the less expensive SPOT transmitted a bad or conflicting piece of datum...Or was it simply the slow response time of a mostly volunteer SAR team, in a rural area without very good communication channels.

[Daniel P from Long Island]

As I said, I was very close to buying a SPOT, because I was ignorant of their limitations. A celfone might actually be better than a SPOT transmitter simply because you get feedback (i.e. a 911 operator) if you have cel coverage where you are lost, unlike the SPOT transmitter.

If you feel you really need a PLB tho, it's worth your life to spend the extra few hundred dollars to get something more reliable.

Also, even though I live in a suburban area, about 55 miles east of The City Of New York, I NEVER leave home without my celfone and handheld GPS receiver. Even here, you can get lost on a lonely road or in the woods with no one in sight. And both devices are cheap enough nowadays thru the wonders of technology, that there really is NO excuse for anyone to be without both devices. They CAN be a lifesaver.

PEACE !:)

[Robb]

Daniel P from Long Island wrote:

3. They use a private network, and NOT a government network that's always monitored.

They use a private network that you pay them to monitor all the time. This is just like your cell phone service that you pay for. If you're willing to pay for a cell phone and trust that you will have a signal when you need it, the same trust should be allowed for SPOT to monitor your distress call 24/7 and notify the authorities.