It's official — with about three months left in 2021, Squamish Search and Rescue has already set a new record for most callouts.
As of Sept. 17, crews have received 132 calls this year.
This beats the previous record of 124 calls in a year established in 2020.
The increase in numbers arrives as COVID-19 restrictions have pushed many people to recreate outdoors.
"The only thing that I know for certain is the more people you put into an area, the more emergencies are going to happen, and we're certainly seeing a lot of people coming to visit and to recreate within the Squamish area," said rescue manager B.J. Chute.
Chute said SAR has managed to adapt to the increase in activity fairly well as a result of a number of new volunteers joining the team.
In addition, the association has learned how to be more precise in sending only the exact amount of people needed for each job.
It's a practice that was honed during the pandemic, as it was necessary to keep potential exposures to as small a circle as possible.
Another factor that has also helped crews deal with the increased demand on their resources is frequency of calls during the week.
Calls used to be concentrated on the weekends and holidays. However, that's changed since COVID-19, as calls are now often dispersed throughout the week.
"There's been a shift in our response patterns since COVID. We're seeing more responses midweek, kind of midday as opposed to strictly on the weekends," Chute said.
Chute suspects that it's the result of more people working remotely with flexible hours.
He said that it's hard to pick out if there's a pattern to calls, though he did note that many people found themselves lost and disoriented.
It's crucial that adventurers take even 15 minutes to do a quick online search about the trail they plan on hiking, Chute said. Something as simple as that could keep people from getting into a tricky situation.
As the weather cools, he said it's especially important to bring a headlamp and appropriate clothing.
Also, folks shouldn't hesitate to call search and rescue if they are in trouble, as it is a free resource, though it relies on goodwill donations, Chute said.
No SAR organization would ever make payment a requirement for assistance, he said.
While it has been a hectic year, Chute said he doubts that things will continue at this pace for the remainder of 2021.
Squamish doesn't have the same access to ski areas that Whistler does, and that typically means winter recreation won't be as busy in town, he noted.
"It's been a challenging year, but, certainly, our volunteers have risen to that challenge," he said.
