Cook County Law Enforcement received a phone call from a woman from Cincinnati, Ohio on June 4, requesting assistance in evacuating her a 17-year-old boy son from Saganagons Lake, Ontario. From information obtained via satellite phone, the woman believed her son may be having an appendicitis attack.
Sheriff Deputy Julie Collman, familiar with the area, spoke with the mother to pinpoint where the boy and three others were camping. The Cincinnati woman said the group was on a large island approximately two miles north of Silver Falls. She told Deputy Collman that the boy’s companions would paddle him out to the Silver Falls portage and on to the Cache Bay Ranger Station early the next morning.
There was discussion of whether a Canadian air rescue could be made, but in her report on the incident, Deputy Collman said because of the remoteness of the campsite and the unstable weather conditions, it was not practical. Collman said the closest and most practical method of evacuation was to transport the young man across Saganaga Lake to the United States and the Gunflint Trail.
Collman recruited Gunflint Trail Fire Department EMT Michael Valentini to use the Voyageur Canoe Outfitters radio system to reach the Quetico Park Ranger Janice Matichuk. Quetico Ranger Matichuk said she would go to the Silver Falls portage immediately if rescuers felt it was necessary. However, the campers could not be reached again by satellite phone, so emergency responders agreed to stick with the original plan to meet the young men at the portage in the morning. Matichuk agreed to meet them at the portage at first light.
Matichuk was at the portage at 5:30 a.m., but there was no sign of the boys. She stayed there until 8 a.m., when she had to return to Cache Bay to fulfill her duties.
Deputy Collman and Valentini, having set out at 6:15 a.m. with the Cook County Sheriffs Office rescue boat, arrived at Cache Bay to learn that the boys had not come to the portage. They headed to the portage to await the group, walking the portage and bushwhacking through the woods looking for signs of the boys until returning to Cache Bay at 10 a.m.
Back at the Ranger Station, the rescuers talked to other canoeists heading onto Saganagons Lake. They gave them a note to give to the young man’s party, asking that they report to the Cache Bay Ranger Station as soon as possible to let responders know if an evacuation was necessary. Collman and Valentini headed back to the Saganaga boat landing and Voyageur Canoe Outfitters, to check in with the boy’s parents. They learned that the boy’s father had received another call via the satellite phone. He said that his son said he was feeling better, but was still coming out of the wilderness and it was still not known if he would need transport by ambulance.
The Gunflint Trail Ambulance continued to stand by. At 11:53 a.m., the mother again contacted Cook County Law Enforcement. She had received another call on the satellite phone—her son was at the Silver Falls portage.
Collman and Valentini set off for Silver Falls again at 12:15 p.m. As they motored in, the weather became increasingly unstable and when the responders rounded Cache Point, they were met with high winds, rain, pea-sized hail and lightning. They were forced to seek shelter at the Ranger Station for 45 minutes.
The storm subsided enough that the rescuers could head to the Silver Falls portage, where they found the 17-year-old, with no pack or gear; wet, cold, anxious and still in pain. Asked where his friends were, the boy said they had dropped him off and headed back to their campsite. Asked why it took so long to reach the Silver Falls portage, the young man told rescuers his friends wanted to eat breakfast first.
With another storm approaching, Collman and Valentini quickly got the patient on board and headed back to the Ranger Station where they got the young man inside and were able to take vitals. He was stable and told his rescuers that it was possible the pain was from a fall last week. It was agreed paddling and portaging could have caused pain from deep bruising and the urgency of a possible appendix rupture was alleviated somewhat. However, the patient was still in enough pain that it was felt medical evaluation was necessary and Collman and Valentini headed back to the Saganaga landing with the boy, arriving back there at 2:16 p.m.
The boy’s father was there and he transported his son to North Shore Hospital where he was treated and released.
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