A soon-to-be mom had a scary experience while hiking on Mount Finlayson in Langford Monday morning.
The pregnant woman, according to Langford Fire Assistant Chief Lance Caven, was hiking alone when she fell near the top of the mountain. She was able to use her cell phone to call for help.
Langford Fire Rescue was called to the mountain at 10:18 a.m. According to Caven, a four-person team was able to assess the woman and determined, due to the steep terrain, she would need to be transported down the Finlayson Arm Road side.
The Metchosin Fire Department was called to aid in the rescue.
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“We wanted to make sure we took the best care we could to get her down safely,” Caven said.
Three teams of emergency responders from both departments scaled the mountain, eventually carrying the woman down until they were able to load her onto a stretcher attached to Metchosin’s ATV. She was transported to an ambulance waiting on Finlayson Arm Road and was taken to hospital with what was believed to be a broken ankle.
“It made it difficult – impossible really – for her to make it out on her own so we helped her along as best we could until we could get the ATV up there and then we took her down in that,” Caven said.
The entire rescue took nearly four hours.
“It’s very busy for a Monday … [but] it’s very slippery,” Caven said. “Even though it’s sunny today, it’s still really cold up there.”
Caven noted it’s a good reminder to others that conditions are still very snowy and wet at the top of the mountain. “If you are going to be out hiking make sure you take your phone with you if you can but I think the biggest thing though is to be prepared for all different types of conditions and you also want to make sure you let someone know where you’re going.”
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