A British Climber Injured On Mount Mabel On New Zealand’s South Island Used A Personal Locator Beacon To Alert The UK Coast Guard Of His Location And Got Rescued
South Island, New Zealand – On Sunday, January 10, 2016, a sixty-four year old British mountaineer slipped on snow and injured his leg while solo climbing the western slope of 2091 meter tall Mount Mabel on the South Island of New Zealand. The climber used a personal locator beacon to send a distress signal. The signal went half way around the world and alerted the UK Coast Guard of his location.
The UK authorities then contacted the authorities in New Zealand. An alpine rescue team was assembled out of Fox Glacier village and transported to the area via helicopter.
The rescue team located the man in a steep gully around 22:30 on Sunday, January 10, 2016. The man was evacuated and flown to Mount Cook village for medical attention. His injuries were not life threatening, but the man was unable to get to safety under his own power. He’s very lucky to have had a personal locator beacon with him.
Mount Mabel, 2091 meters, is located 4.3 miles south of Mount Cook (Aoraki). It is part of the Mount Cook Range on the South Island of New Zealand. See it’s location on TopoMap.co.nz.
A personal locator beacon is a handheld device that sends a high powered emergency distress signal via satellite to the proper authorities in the event of an emergency. When you purchase a PLB, it must be registered with the government in the country where you live. PLBs are a one time cost with no fees. Once registered, you can update your profile with pertinent information such as name, age, emergency contacts, contact details, etc.
When a distress signal is received, it transmits your location and allows the authorities to see your information. They can then quickly send Search and Rescue to your location for assistance. In the event of an emergency, a personal locator beacon certainly has the potential to save your life.
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Read More About This Incident From These Sources:
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Read A Mountain Journey’s Review of the ACR ResQLink 406 Personal Locator Beacon.
