Another important story from our brave rescue teams of Vermont:
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Stowe Mountain Rescue was called out yesterday to assist two snowboarders who were out of bounds from Stowe Mountain Resort on the Spruce Peak side. They got themselves cliffed out and thoroughly stuck.
They danced around the edges of calling emergency services, making several other calls before they finally relented and dialed 911 – the essential call that gives their coordinates and summons our team.
It was an easy mission: we rode the Sunny Spruce lift and then hiked down to their location. We set up a simple rope system for each snowboarder and belayed them safely to the base of the cliff. Our team then rappelled down and walked on out.
Our subjects’ reluctance to call may have stemmed from uncertainty about how we operate, specifically around the cost of a rescue.
- In keeping with the State of Vermont, we do not charge for rescue.
- We never want financial considerations to deter someone for calling for the help that they need.
- We’re a town agency and have a budget from the Town of Stowe that we are incredibly grateful for.
- Any additional training and equipment costs are met by voluntary donations to the Stowe Mountain Rescue Association.
So there you have it: you can hesitate to call if you think you’ve got things covered, but never for fear of being presented with a bill for rescue. Breathe easy on that front. And keep in mind that by dialing 911 you’re not necessarily committing to a full-scale rescue and a story on our Facebook page.
It could simply result in a phone consultation that puts you on our radar and allows us to track your progress. We can stay on standby and will happily swing into action if you need it.
This is enlightened self-interest, by the way – taking yesterday’s example, it was much easier for us to rescue those snowboarders BEFORE they slipped over the edge and sustained life-changing injuries…
