Amateur Radio Helps Save Four Lives

From the ARRL...


JUNEAU, AK, Jul 25, 2001--Just four weeks after exercising their emergency communications skills during ARRL Field Day, members of the Northern Southeast Amateur Radio Emergency Services and Juneau Amateur Radio Club put those skills to use to help to save a fellow ham operator and several companions.




On July 22, Mark Griffith, KL0MO, was rafting down the Herbert Glacier River with three friends when their raft was severely damaged. The group was stranded on a small island in the middle of the raging river. There had been 2.4 inches of rain in the preceding 24 hours, and the river was running extremely fast.



At 7:36 that evening, Griffith used the phone patch feature of the KL7PF repeater at Lena Point to call 911. The 911 operator--who also happened to be the ARES Emergency Coordinator--obtained information from Griffith, and a time schedule was arranged for him to call back to get additional information while search-and-rescue personnel were alerted.



In the meantime, Bob Dewey, WL7QC, heard Griffith's transmission and set out for the trailhead to meet with the rescue personnel. Once there Dewey worked alongside the search-and-rescue incident commander and was able to contact Griffith on simplex, providing direct contact with rescue personnel.


The rescue was hindered by the rain, which had swollen the river to the point that it covered the trail. As a result, the Juneau Mountain Rescue team had to cut its way through dense undergrowth to get to the stranded rafters. The weather at the time prevented the use of a helicopter, and the river was too fast--and had too much debris--to use a rescue boat.



During the night, the four used the remains of their raft and their life jackets to improvise a shelter and huddled together. Throughout the night Griffith provided the four with regular updates. Although his battery had died several times, it retained sufficient power to receive Dewey's communications. Bob Simpson, NL7XZ, Glenn Sicks, KL0QC and Brent Fischer, KL1AT, maintained a listening watch on the Juneau repeater system to provide assistance, if needed.



At about 1 AM July 23, a member of SEADOGS, the search-and-rescue dog team, located the four. Although the rescuers were unable to reach the stranded rafters, their mere presence lifted their spirits. They were airlifted off the island around 7 AM by a US Coast Guard helicopter from Sitka. The four rafters suffered only mild hypothermia.



"Ham radio really saved their lives," said incident commander Bruce Bowler. "It was a great help in finding out exactly where they were and what condition they were in. We were able to get updates throughout the night on how they were doing."



Griffith noted that had it not been for the radio, "no one would have raised the alarm until 9 PM. We told them not to worry until 9 PM."--Nick Meacher, N3WWE