(FORT FRANCES, ON) – On August 28, 2014 at 12:28 pm officers of the Rainy River District Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) responded to an emergency distress SPOT locator beacon in Quetico Provincial Park. The SPOT emergency beacon signal was received through the SPOT international emergency centre located in Texas, USA who in turn contacted the OPP Communication Centre, the police service of jurisdiction.
The area of the park where the beacon indicated there was an emergency was accessible by air access only. Members of the OPP North West Region Emergency Response Team (ERT) based out of Fort Frances, ON responded to the area by a chartered float plane.
Investigation revealed that a 60 year old male from Duluth, MN had broken his leg and was in need of medical attention. His party found another party travelling in the area with a SPOT locator which was used to call for help. Officers flew the male to Eva Lake where he was transported to hospital by land ambulance.