A scenic drive in the country took a turn when a 75 year old man found himself in some trouble. Around 6 p.m. Monday night RCMP got a call from the man telling them he was stuck in the mud. To complicate the issue, he was also not sure of his location.
RCMP say with the help of cell phone GPS they were able to locate the senior. He was found in a wooded area 80 kilometres outside of Grande Prairie near the Smoky River. RCMP had help from Grande Prairie Technical Search and Rescue, RCMP Police Dog Services and STARS Air Ambulance as they searched the area.
Police Dog Services located the vehicle around 11:30 p.m. and, according to RCMP, about 15 minutes later STARS spotted the man. He was more than 1.5 kilometres away from his vehicle. The area was clear enough to allow STARS to land. They picked up the man and took him to hospital to be assessed.
RCMP say the cooperation was a key to the happy ending.
“Collaboration between agencies in our community remains instrumental in the success of cases like these. Grande Prairie RCMP will continue to utilize community partnerships such as this one with STARS and Technical Search and Rescue to better ensure public safety and efficient deployment of resources.”
There was no immediate update available on the man’s condition.