Central Okanagan Search & Rescue
4680 Old Vernon Road Kelowna, BC, Canada

A good event for the little outdoors people

On Sunday afternoon COSAR was asked by the RCMP to locate and assist two stranded motorists on James Lake Forest Service Rd. The motorists had gotten stuck trying to drive up to James Lake. They were first located by a man snowmobiling in the area. The motorists asked the snowmobiler to contact a family member for assistance. That family member was unable to assist, so the RCMP was contacted and then RCMP asked COSAR to extract them before nightfall. A team was deployed... by snowmobile to find the motorists and bring them out. COSAR located the motorists only to find that a 4x4 off-road club was assisting the motorists. The 4x4 club just happened to be recreating in the area and came across our subjects and managed to get them unstuck and turned around. The COSAR members stood by to ensure the stranded motorists got out safely but as they and the 4x4 club were escorting out the first vehicle, the group came upon another truck that had gotten stuck and they assisted them too. COSAR would like the thank the 4x4 vehicle club for their assistance with the stranded motorists and bringing them out of the area. This is COSAR’s 6th call of the year.

We need to recruit this teenager! Well done young man.

Our thoughts are with Vernon SAR after the passing of longtime volunteer Jon Ottesen

A SAR member from Vancouver Island needs your help. She is battling cancer and to help with the financial burden that her family is facing, a donation program has been set up. She's helped countless others, and now she needs our support.

Last year was the busiest in the history of Central Okanagan Search and Rescue. In all, the team responded to 81 emergencies; historically we average 55-60 a year. Although COVID19 may be behind the increase in outdoor recreationalists, the team also responded to a record number of urban searches for distraught individuals and missing seniors and children. Sadly, there were also four body recoveries.... The 51 COSAR members volunteered over 20,000 hours in 2020; 4,342 were spent on incidents, over 10,000 on training and the remainder on maintenance, repair, and general administration. August was the busiest month with 16 calls. The team also responded to 10 mutual aid calls including helping Penticton RCMP with evacuations from the Christie Mountain wildfire and searching for a missing hiker in Manning Park. The team recruited 14 new members in 2020 and all are currently operational. We also augmented our team’s capabilities by adding an RCMP certified civilian search and rescue dog to our ranks. Chase is a two-year-old Labrador retriever. For 2021, COSAR plans to recruit administration and maintenance staff so keep an eye on Facebook for more information if you are interested. Public donations helped keep us operational and we received nearly $30,000, including $15,000 from the Central Okanagan Foundation and $2,500 from ReMax. The remainder came from the public via the Cosar.ca donation button. The money went towards first aid and rope team training, a TrailRider wheeled chair, and a new snowmobile. COSAR would like to thank the Central Okanagan Regional District and members of the Kelowna Snowmobile Club for their support. Goals for 2021 include finding a new operations base closer to the city centre and having fewer calls. For information on how to help reduce the number of callouts, please visit COSAR.ca or adventuresmart.ca

Important information from our friends at BC AdventureSmart.

Our sincere condolences to the family. https://www.castanet.net//Peachland-man-found-deceased-on-

COSAR was tasked out last night to search for a missing snowshoer on the Telemark trails. #kelowna #bcsar

COSAR was tasked out tonight at 5pm to search for a missing 60 year old who was separated from his group while sledding in the Greystokes area. The subject was located just before midnight suffering from exposure to the winter conditions. Thank you to the members of Kelowna Snowmobile Club who helped out with tonight’s search! #kelowna #bcsar

Last night COSAR was called to look for a missing male in the La Casa area on Westside Road. Earlier in the day RCMP had conducted a preliminary search but called in searchers around 4:30pm after being unsuccessful. Because of the location, Vernon Search and Rescue was asked to assist. More than 30 searchers eventually took part in the task. We are happy to report the subject was found by a member of the public and returned home late last evening.

COSAR members have spent the last couple of days on task with members of other SAR teams from throughout the Province in Manning Park searching for missing hiker, Jordan Naterer. #bcsara

We’re out at UBCO Lot H. Come out and drop off toys or non-perishable food in this no-contact fundraising event

Three calls on Tuesday.

Our colleagues at North Shore Rescue are featured in an upcoming 5 part TV series! The series airs Nov 10th on Knowledge Network, or you can also stream it on the Knowledge Network website. Great work NSR! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NH_FNlPNEJA&feature=youtu.be

Going out to play this long weekend? Don't forget to follow BC AdventureSmart's 3 Ts to help you stay safe! #Kelowna #RDCO

It has been a busy long weekend for the team. This afternoon the team was tasked out on two different medical rescues with over lapping time frames, one up Bear Lake Main and one above Peachland. The team has responded to 4 tasks in just over 24 hours. More details to follow. #bcsara #kelowna #peachland #WestKelowna #RDCO