By Camille Aubin
[email protected]

Nikki Donnelly, a 21-year-old woman from Toronto, was sadly found dead by search and rescue (SAR) crews Friday, Jan. 15 in Squamish, B.C. She had been missing since Thursday afternoon. The latest news about this person came from her boyfriend in Ontario, who she contacted as a last resort, informing him she was lost before losing connection.

A wave of hateful comments, blaming her fateful final decision to call her boyfriend instead of 911 raged across her Instagram page and other social media and news feeds. Then, Michael Coyle, with Coquitlam SAR, decided to express his discontent on Twitter hit back at people who are shaming Donnelly for her judgment. “The backlash on social media has been the most toxic. It’s a common occurrence for people to blame the victim,” tweeted Coyle. “There are a few reasons why this might be. One is panic, the other is fear of consequences.” In another tweet, Coyle explained, “for panic, the issue revolves around fear, being cold, and dehydration. All of these things affect the cognitive processes. I have firsthand experience with these as I have made some terrible decisions while dehydrated, and at least on one occasion nearly died.”

People are making harsh comments does nothing to encourage those who in the future find themselves in life-or-death situations make a sensible decision. On the contrary, these kinds of comments serve to increase the feeling of guilt and weakness in those who are lost and in undeniable need of help. If this is way society continues to react, people in danger will continue to prefer to call friends, family and boyfriend rather than 911 directly.

On bcsara.com, the SAR commitment of ‘no charge for search and rescue’ is clear. “For the nearly 2,500 volunteers that belong to the 79 registered search and rescue teams in the province of B.C. the moral obligation of helping those in need will always take precedence over political, legal, economic and jurisdictional issues. We conduct over 1,300 responses in B.C. each year; from urban searches for people with dementia, wilderness searches for people who become lost on hikes, to backcountry rescues using technical expertise and equipment.”

Time is crucial for SAR throughout the year, but even more so in winter because people venturing into the backcountry are often not prepared to face the uncertain conditions, avalanche terrain, shorter days and the freezing temperatures of the night.

If you feel your life is in danger, do not hesitate: call 911 immediately. You will help SAR and have the chance to communicate with your loved ones repeatedly after the incident, rather than for the last time during the incident.