LONG LAKE 58 FIRST NATION, Ont. — A snowmobiler who ran into trouble in the Longlac area over the Christmas holidays was fortunate that help arrived when it did.
The man was last seen at a store on Long Lake No. 58 First Nation around mid-day on Dec. 23.
He told people he had an errand in Geraldton, and planned to travel there by snowmobile.
However, the man left just as a major snowstorm moved in.
When he failed to return home, a search was launched the next day.
Police, the Long Lake No. 58 Canadian Ranger patrol, and volunteers using snowmobiles and vehicles spent Dec. 24 as well as Christmas Day searching without success.
Finally, on Dec. 26, members of the OPP Emergency Response Team flying in a helicopter located the missing man on Long Lake.
He was alive but suffering from severe hypothermia and frostbite to his feet, which required medical treatment.
An OPP spokesperson says about 50 centimetres of snow had fallen in the Longlac area during the storm, and temperatures plunged to minus 30 during strong wind, resulting in severe wind chill.
Late Tuesday night, OPP revealed that the snowmobiler – 34-year-old Zack Finlayson – told rescuers he got lost in the blizzard and decided to make a fire in the bush to stay warm.
He came out when he heard the helicopter overhead.
The rescue location was about 20 kilometres south of Longlac.
