An experienced winter hiker and their dog were rescued over the weekend by helicopter in northeastern Ontario after being reported missing from Killarney Provincial Park, police say.
The 33-year-old from Cambridge was an experienced winter hiker travelling with enough food for the planned eight-day excursion, Ontario Provincial Police said in a social media post.
They were reported missing Nov. 10 when they didn’t return on time.
Officers with the Nipissing West detachment, emergency response unit and aviation unit found the hiker after two days of searching with a helicopter, OPP said.
The hiker sustained minor injuries and was taken to hospital as a precaution.
Police urge the public to use a free locator app called ‘What 3 Words.’
“The app labels every three squared metres with a unique three-word location string which can be converted into latitude and longitude coordinates for entry into the Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system in use at the OPP provincial communication centre (PCC),” police said.
“Even if the caller does not have the app previously downloaded on their mobile device, the PCC communicator can send a link to the caller’s cell phone which will enable the caller (with data access and connectivity), to find their ‘what3words’ location.”
More than 40 languages are available in the app and the location is shared in English.