I live in the Western Communities on Vancouver Island, in British Columbia. I recently heard this story and I think it's a great argument why public services like search and rescue should charge for rescues if the person(s) being rescued break the law:
The story starts with a plane crash landing on the beach at the Carmanah Point Lighthouse back in February. The pilot and one passenger, were flying his little plane (apparently something he built himself from a hobbyist kit) when they crash landed on the beach. After climbing to the lighthouse to seek help, the Canadian Armed Forces sent out a helicopter which picked them up and took them to Victoria.
Two days later, the pilot, along with his two brothers, headed back to the plane. Apparently they planned to repair the plane and fly it out before the wind and ocean tides tore it apart. The trek was roughly 16km and the terrain made it extremely difficult to navigate. The three lugged in their tools, a gun for protection (from bears and cougars I imagine), and a replacement propeller.
You ready for this? Guess what, they got lost. When they didn't show up at the lighthouse, they were reported missing and a search began. They eventually made it to the lighthouse, but were not allowed to fly the plane out. The coast guard flew them out by helicopter the next day.
The crown has charged the pilot with unlawfully landing an aircraft in a park and for firearms possession. Additionally, both he and his two brothers, are also charged with trespassing in a closed area.
Uh, hold on a minute, why don't they make them pay the cost of BOTH rescues? It costs the taxpayers money.
As a footnote, from what I understand, the pilot did manage to get a helicopter to hoist the plane off the beach so it could be salvaged.
...and in case you're curious where this happened, here's the location of Carmanah Point Lighthouse:
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