An RCMP officer has apologized to the widower of a skier who died while stranded in the B.C. back country after the force failed to launch a search when it learned of an SOS message in the snow.
Gilles Blackburn and his wife, Marie-Josee Fortin, skied out of bounds at the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort in B.C. on February 15.
Blackburn, 50, was rescued on Feb. 24 after he and his wife spent days in the wilderness without food or shelter. Fortin, 44, died on Feb. 22 of hypothermia.
At least three times after the pair went missing, helicopters spotted SOS signals that the couple had written in the snow.
However, a rescue operation was not launched until Feb. 24, when a helicopter pilot spotted Blackburn waving his arms for help.
At a town council meeting in Golden, B.C. on Tuesday night, Staff Sgt. Marko Shehovac explained the sequence of events that led him to put off authorizing a search for the couple after learning of SOS signals on Feb. 21.
In his statement to council, Shehovac said an RCMP constable who received the report of the SOS markings notified both Golden Search and Rescue and the ski resort, who both said they had already heard the news and they had followed their missing skier protocols.
When the constable told this to Shehovac, he believed the "information was already reported and dealt with," and required no further action.
Shehovac also said that the ski guide who reported seeing an SOS signal on Feb. 17 to the resort may have assumed that they were going to call police, while the resort may have assumed the guide would contact police.
"Having had the advantage of 20/20 hindsight and investigating further into this for the last week, I have come to the realization I had put blind faith in the information that was provided and that I failed to ask probing questions to satisfy myself that the matter was adequately addressed," Shehovac told the council meeting.
"Had I done so, a search of the area would have been initiated on the 21st. For this I am truly sorry to Mr. Blackburn, his family and friends. I am accountable for this error in judgment on Feb. 21st and will accept the consequences."
Shehovac went on to say that an independent review of the events that led to Fortin's death is underway to determine what happened and how such communication breakdowns may be prevented in the future.
He also praised the work of the Golden Search and Rescue team, who have also been criticized for their decisions.
"I have worked with this team for the last 13 years and they are the most dedicated volunteers that I have had the pleasure to work with," Shehovac said.
