SUCCESS STORY
Lifesaving Search from the Air and on the Ground
Cooperation of Nova Scotia SAR Groups Leads to the Successful Rescue
of a Lost Four-Year-Old Boy
Four-year-old Justin Leblanc was cold, exhausted and unable to move after
being lost for over six hours in the Nova Scotia woods. When the search
helicopter spotted and hovered over him, he sat up briefly but quickly
lay down again - exhausted from his ordeal. A few more hours of being
lost and the reunion that was to occur may not have been so joyous.
Justin went missing from his home a short distance from the nearby ballpark
between 9:00 and 9:30 on the morning of June 7, 2003. It was believed
that a large dog, which belonged to Justin's neighbour and that which
also been missing since that morning, was with the child. One clue to
his location was his boots found stuck in the mud earlier in the afternoon.
It looked like he walked right out of them and continued away from the
ballpark.
Teams go into action
A multi-organization search was quickly mobilized, including members
of the Yarmouth Civil Aviation Search and Rescue Association (CASARA),
the Yarmouth Ground Search and Rescue and Barrington Ground Search and
Rescue teams, the RCMP, the Pubnico Fire Department, paramedics and local
volunteers. A search effort would be made from the ground and from the
sky to find Justin.
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| A searcher onboard a helicopter spotted
Justin lying under a small tree after being lost for six hours in
the Nova Scotia woods. |
A Department of Natural Resources (DNR) helicopter was sent to the search
and CASARA spotters, Becky Cottreau and Cliff Gavel, were taken onboard
to spot the boy from the air. After flying for an hour or so with no positive
results, they began flying a grid search across West Pubnico. At approximately
3:35 pm, Cliff Gavel called the helicopter around and all on board were
greatly relieved to see the big yellow dog only a few feet away from the
child, who was lying under a small tree.
Because the terrain was too poor to allow the helicopter to land, the
aircraft directed a ground team to follow them to him, where they hovered
until he was in the arms of one the members of the ground search and rescue
team. Within 10 minutes the team was back to the ballpark. Paramedics
gave the boy a thorough check-up to ensure that he was okay. Later his
father reported that Justin was tired, cold and somewhat dehydrated but,
all things considered, he was fine. The father also expressed his heartfelt
thanks on behalf of Justin's family for the efforts of all involved in
the rescue of his son.
Training and coordination saved Justin's life
Searcher Becky Cottreau, declared that "it was an absolutely incredible
day to be a CASARA member! This truly is what all of our training is for
and I can honestly say that the instant that we were able to positively
identify Justin and to verify that he was not seriously injured was the
best CASARA moment that I have ever had in my nearly 14 years as a CASARA
member!"
This search and rescue was an excellent example of a well-coordinated
activity between ground and air search and rescue resources in Nova Scotia.
It shows the great progress that these organizations are making toward
seamless search service - so that others may live.
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