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North Vancouver firefighters respond to 5 rescue calls in single day

The busy day included a rope rescue of an injured cliff jumper in Lynn Canyon

People getting outdoors in North Vancouver this weekend kept firefighters busy, as one municipal crew responded to five consecutive calls for help in one day.

Phones started ringing for District of North Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services at 11:45 a.m. on Sunday with a hiker in distress on the Baden Powell Trail, which joins the Grouse Grind.

Firefighters came across the 67-year-old man on the trail who was having trouble breathing. They were able to walk the man out and an ambulance met him in the parking lot, where he refused treatment and left, said Assistant Fire Chief Dennis Cappellini.

Then, at around 1:30 p.m., firefighters attended Quarry Rock near Marker 6 to help a 45-year-old man who slipped and fell on the trail and dislocated his hip. The crew packaged him up and carried him out of the trail, handing him off to paramedics who transported him to hospital, Cappellini said.

The biggest rescue of the day happened just after 5 p.m. after a cliff jumper in Lynn Canyon dislocated his shoulder when he jumped into 90 Foot Pool.

The man was able to get himself to shore and his friend alerted a park ranger. As district crews were already responding to an alarms ringing call at a high rise at the time, City of North Vancouver firefighters assisted on the canyon call.

Rescuers set up a high-angle rope system on the suspension bridge and sent a crew member down who assessed the injured jumper and packaged him up on a harness, Cappellini said.

The rest of the team pulled the two up and helped transfer the injured man to BC Ambulance.

During the Lynn Canyon rescue, DNV firefighters got another call of an injured mountain biker at the Grouse Mountain bike park. The crew help the 21-year-old male – who had injured his back, ribs and abdomen – get to an ambulance.

While returning to the station from the cliff jumper rescue, that crew got yet another call back to Lynn Canyon. Firefighters went back over the suspension bridge and recovered a woman experiencing severe pain and who was going in and out of consciousness. She too was sent to hospital, Cappellini said.

Be prepared for heat and sunshine, assistant fire chief says

Those five rescues came in on top of their regular number of medical calls, he said.

“It’s a weekend. The weather’s getting better. It just goes like that sometimes,” Cappellini said.

Some people may have been out the evening before, and were sitting at home before they decided spontaneously to go out and do something on Sunday, he said.

Cappellini said to always be prepared for the environmental conditions, which at this time of year involve heat and sunshine.

“Wear hats and sunscreen, and stay hydrated,” Cappellini said.

He recommends doing strenuous activities when it’s cooler – during the morning and evening.

“When it’s not as hard on your body,” Cappellini said.

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