A mother and her 13-year-old son – seriously injured by a fallen tree during a thunderstorm in a remote section of Algonquin Park Saturday night – were air-lifted to safety via float plane after a harrowing joint-services rescue.
The mother and son had been camping when major thunderstorms with strong winds rolled through the area Saturday night and a tree fell on the tent leaving the boy with “very serious injuries” and no way to get to help.
The mom was able to trigger an ‘SOS’ signal on a device which transmitted their coordinates to rescuers.
Upper Ottawa Valley OPP members then loaded up their ATVs and headed to the park entrance nearest to the location. The rescue team also included OPP Emergency Response Team members, Algonquin Park Rangers and the Renfrew County Paramedics’ Sierra Team.
The OPP said an aerial rescue wasn’t possible due to the weather, so first responders had to make a daunting trek through roads and trails filled with downed trees and other debris and through dense brush, using hand saws to clear the way until chainsaws could arrive.
Rescuers then launched a canoe and paddled to the stranded mother and her seriously injured son and began immediate first aid.
By 8:30 Sunday morning, a Ministry of Natural Resources float plane was able to land on the nearby lake and transport mother and son to hospital, where the young man underwent treatment for his injuries
In addition to those on the ground, the rescue effort also included the MNR aviation team, OPP Communication Centres and Provincial Operations Centre, the Algonquin Park Duty Officer and the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre, as well as the Deep River Fire Department, who provided the much-needed chain saws.
“The seamless teamwork of this successful rescue,” the OPP said on social media, “is an example of the resilience and training of all involved.”