Free Automated Rescue Notification System

[Drew Wiley]

I've been around a lot of rescues in the mtns - everything from heart attacks to people
being thrown from horses - plus encountered a few fatal incidents. The biggest problem is with groups - Boy Scouts, Outward Bound, etc - inexperienced guides with
too many kids. Cell phone coverage is extremely poor even in the Sierras, and the PCT
and Muir trail are like crowded freeways compared to a lot of the backcountry, where
one can get quite isolated, especially in the Fall. But I would have questions about how
reliable any automated service would be, and whether it was battery or weather
dependent, and especially if it was abused - would anyone bother to respond? There
is indeed a need for rescues, and they are more common than most people realize.
I'm a bit skeptical about people who wander around high altititude in Oct wearing
sneakers and T-shirts, but it happens. I've certainly had my share of vacations spoiled
by having to haul some unprepared person out of the high country. But not everyone
who wants to enjoy the outdoors is either adequately in shape or carrying proper gear
for the unpredictabilities of mtn weather. The desert can be worse. So anything that
actually helps a rescue crew pinpoint where someone is would potentially save
millions of dollars annually in search efforts.

[Jim Michael]

Drew, using Spot as an example, the device id is associated with the owner who had to set up an account presumably using valid criteria such as a credit card number. I'm not sure what might be construed as abuse, unless someone used the 911 button to summon help because he forgot an opener for the Perrier. The Spot folks are going to alert authorities with the reported coordinates, and it would be up to them to decide whether your actions were akin to reporting a false emergency.

As far as the reliability of the service, it's going to depend on the underlying technology. The satellite communications used for the emergency signaling devices are pretty dependable. Other systems that use cell phones or amateur radio frequencies (APRS based) are pretty much line of site to a receiving station and thus pretty much useless in remote areas. GPS has had a problem with tree cover in the past, so attenuation of signal might be a concern.

[domaz]

Jeez, ic-racer, considering how many more people drive then hike, and even those who do both get in their auto a lot more frequently than they hike, that makes hiking a shockingly dangerous proposition, at least for injury.

Auto injury rates are something like 922 per 100,000 (calculating based on 304 million population), comparing apples to apples it makes driving a shockingly dangerous proposition.