Lost in the Woods for 13 Days

Summary: This lady was lost in the New Brunswick woods for 13 days. Swampy area, densely wooded. Her gear was jeans and a hoody. And a cell phone, which she lost. She survived on rain and swamp water, and wild berries. Rescued by a power line maintenance crew who helicoptered into the utility right of way for work, and incredibly, were close enough to hear her call for help.

I can only imagine what the mosquitoes and black flies were like. She was determined to survive, though she kept walking in circles. And she had water.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/nb-missing-woman-founf-after-13-days-1.5667614

https://nationalpost.com/news/new-brunsw...c-05bc2c9ee393/

Water and summertime promotes survival, plus stored food reserves.

Too rough for helicopter extraction, but they were able to carry her (less than a mile). Probably the helo did not have hoist capability?? (seems odd for a working chopper...)

Anyway, every thing worked out OK. That's what counts.....

I gather it wasn't a SAR helicopter, but rather a company chopper. Hoisting equipment is one thing; but I suppose hoisting a casualty safely is pretty specialized work.

The company crews did an outstanding job. I assume they train for this sort of situation because, in remote locations, the first responders are your team. Hauling someone on a backboard 1.25 km through woods and swampy terrain is a pretty nice feat IMO.

Glad she's safe. But when I hear a story like this, I always think how much easier her time would have been with the most basic of equipment and preparation.

Wow! Sounds like she got lucky! Glad she made it out okay.

So apparently she was not out hiking.

I guess survival is graded pass/fail, so she passes! But it took a lot of luck! She could have been rescued a lot sooner (or prevented the entire ordeal completely) by being better prepared. Good thing for her that NB is fairly temperate (at least this time of year). Even having a BIC or some matches would have helped. At least being able to have a fire at night would make you feel better and keep the boogey man at bay.

Why she was out there will no doubt remain a mystery. It does seem odd.

Interesting that she was 300 metres from a utility right of way. But if you've ever pushed through one of those dense black spruce bogs, you realize that you're almost blind past what's in front of your face. I actually hate them. It's far too easy to be turned around, and you can be suddenly find yourself face to face with a bear or cow moose and calf. No room for mutual introductions.

For all we know, she went into the woods for a bathroom break and lost her bearings. I've heard of this more than once.

All the helo hoists I have ever worked involved standard, mil=spec Hueys (you can tell I am a geezer!) and they worked just fine. But not all choppers have hoists of any description. I'll bet any hoist has to meet fairly tough safety standards.

Agreed, no problem with lift/hoist capacity. These guys are yoinking all sorts of equipment and materials to their work sites.

My thinking was about appropriate training/certification for lifting out a prone casualty (esp. a non-employee), appropriate equipment for the same, company policy for such situations, liability, etc. It's a different calculus than a SAR or military crew would face.

I’ve only been lifted by Navy helo’s, but those had dedicated aircrew in the back to operate the lifting gear. We used either dog collars (a strap at the end of the cable you wrap around and hook up), but that was decades back. The collar doesn’t weigh a lot, but it required some effort because the person being lifted can slip out — seriously not good. The last time I was lifted they used a cable and hook-latch (whatever the terminology) to snap onto my vest’s D-ring.

Regardless, there’s gear required other than the hoist (winch) for a casualty in her condition which would require the helo to carry additional weight. Fuel is necessary weight, SAR equipment and personnel weren’t necessary for their mission that day, so that would be extra that helo pilots would probably choose to not carry. A basket would have been nice, but that definitely needs a certified operator, weight and storage space.

This wasn’t a SAR mission, so the necessary gear probably wasn’t on the helo and lacking a dedicated operator is a show stopper for a lift. That said, I’m in the dark as to equipment and personnel on the helo used in this rescue, but finding a place to land the helo to pick up the lost hiker was an easy decision to make.

Just my opinion, wasn’t there.

This thread has reminded me of a past operation in which the Huey was in a hover, about ready to lower the cable, when suddenly there was a reed light in the cockpit, and the pilot informed us over the outside speaker that he was returning to rebel base with a malfunction.

A Highway Patrol bird without a winch substituted and we had to carry the victim about one half mile to a spot where he was able to land.

Even with thee occasional glitch, helos are a godsend for victims distant from medical care, where transport speed can be critical.

Winches are pretty much only on dedicated SAR helos. They have a relatively small weight capacity (perhaps 300-350 kg ?), which is adequate to lift a rescuer and victim, but not near enough for industrial loads. Winches require a dedicated winch operator, and a great deal of specialized and dangerous training for pilot, winch operator, and rescuer.

Helicopters used in industrial work typically do not have a winch for hoisting. While they can lift quite big loads, they generally use the cargo hook on the bottom of the helicopter. The cargo hook could be used for rescue work, this would be the "short haul" technique (sometimes also called "long line"). However, using this to lift a living person (as opposed to a piece of industrial kit) again requires a high level of very specialized training. Also some specialized gear to attach the victim. This isn't something that one would want to improvise on the spot.

Given the limited information available on this incident, it sounds to me that opting to carry her out to where they could rendezvous with a ground vehicle appears to be absolutely the wisest option.

Good comments, AKSAR, and I appreciate your wisdom. The news reports are all over the place (as usual). But what you say makes sense.

I'd read that her car ran out of gas. She likely tried to walk to help.

That makes sense, but I wonder why she didn't stick to the road? Thought she had a "shortcut" I wonder?

Ben East, an writer for Outdoor Life in the '40s thru '60s covered many survival stories involving lost hikers. His advice: Never step off a road or marked trail unless you're ready to spend the night in the woods.

Interestingly, this story is quite similar to another I saw today -

Washington State Teen Found Alive in Woods 8 Days After Going Missing

[Excerpts]

An 18-year-old from Washington state who went missing on July 24 was found eight days later in a heavily wooded section of the Cascade Mountains east of Seattle, in what rescuers say is a “miracle.”

Giovanna “Gia” Fuda was last seen on surveillance footage at a coffee shop in Index, Washington, before she disappeared last Friday, ABC News reported.

She left her home in Maple Valley, Washington, without telling her relatives where she was going.

- - - -

A search-and-rescue team came across Fuda’s notebook along a deep stream in the woods around 2:45 p.m. The crew eventually followed the stream and found shoes and clothes that belonged to Fuda.

Once the rescuers reached up a steep embankment, they found Fuda two miles from the bottom of the “very steep” ravine.

Medics treated her at the scene and took her to a local hospital, where she is listed as being in stable condition.

Abbott said she had no food on her but was drinking water from the creek.

Officials could not explain why Fuda ended up in the woods, as she was too incoherent at the time of her rescue and could not explain what happened over the past week.

Abbott said authorities have ruled out a possible kidnapping “at least at this point.”

Meanwhile, Fuda’s family is just happy she was found alive and safe.

https://www.breitbart.com/local/2020/08/...-going-missing/

As with all Breitbart stories, the comment section is full of pro- and anti-Trump posts. Ignore.

Same incident was on early morning TV. One take home - available. water is crucial for survival of any length.

You are absolutely right about brainless comments....Disgusting!

Imagine how much easier this would have been with even a simple cargo pocket sized kit. (Or even better a well equipped hiking pack...)

A bail-out bag in her car’s trunk?