The Use And Misuse Of The SPOT Satellite Messenger

At 1:30 a.m. on September 2nd, 2009, the GEOS Emergency Response Center in Houston, Texas, notified Grand Canyon dispatch that a SPOT 911 activation had been received from the Park. The coordinates transmitted by the device placed it along the Tanner Trail, about three miles from the trailhead on the rim. The Tanner Trail has very little shade and no water for its entire nine miles to the Colorado River.

Investigation revealed that the registered owner of the SPOT was on a trip with a permit-holder who had extensive hiking experience in Grand Canyon. At dawn, a Park ranger started down the trail just before an NPS helicopter was launched with additional personnel. The ranger on foot arrived on the scene to find three people asleep in their tents and no one in need of assistance.

One of the three hikers, on her first backcountry trip into the Canyon, said she'd become worried during the night when her group ran out of water and she then heard what she described as "odd respiratory noises" coming from the group leader while he slept. At that point, the hiker decided that the group was in trouble and activated her SPOT messenger device. The she immediately went back to sleep without letting her hiking companions know what she'd done and without ever attempting to wake the leader.

Upon finding out about the SPOT 911 activation, the group decided to forgo the rest of their planned hike and return to the rim. After interviewing the hikers, the Park decided not to take any further action.

Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons / GNU Free Documentation License

On the evening of September 23rd, 2009, Grand Canyon Park rangers began a search for hikers on the remote Royal Arch Loop, who activated their rented SPOT satellite tracking device. The GEOS Emergency Response Center in Houston reported that someone in the group of four - two men and their two teenage sons - had pressed the SPOT's "Help" button.

Due to darkness and the remoteness of the location indicated by the SPOT coordinates, rangers were unable to reach them by helicopter until the next morning. When the hikers were located, they'd moved about a mile and a half to a water source. They declined rescue, since they'd activated the device due to their lack of water.

Later that same evening, the same SPOT device was activated, this time using the "911" button. The coordinates placed them less than a quarter mile from the location where the searchers had found them that morning. But again, darkness prevented a response by a Park helicopter, so an Arizona DPS helicopter whose crew used night vision goggles was brought in. When the group was found, they said they were concerned about possible dehydration because the water they'd found tasted salty. The helicopter crew turned down the group's request for a night evacuation but did give them water before they left.

The next morning, another SPOT "help" activation came in from the same group. This third time, they were flown out by Park helicopter, and all four refused medical assessment or treatment.

Apparently, the group's leader had hiked once before in Grand Canyon, but the other adult had no Grand Canyon hiking experience and very little backpacking experience in general. When asked what they would have done without the SPOT device, the leader said,"We would have never attempted this hike."

The group leader was issued a citation by the Park for creating a hazardous condition.

Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons / GNU Free Documentation License

On October 17th, 2009, a thousand-pound boulder fell on a man in a cave. The other members of his group were able to get him out from under the boulder and activated the SPOT device that had been set at the entrance to the cave. Search and Rescue then sent two helicopters to the scene, and the five rescuers aboard began working on extricating the injured man to the surface. This took three hours to accomplish.

In the meantime, a ground unit was hiking in to the scene to help carry the victim out. It was 4 a.m. the next morning before they were able to get him to a place where he could be hoisted out. In all, about 60 rescuers--all but four being volunteers--were involved, some of whom sustained minor injuries during the mission.

The victim was said to have 7 fractured ribs on the right side of his chest and 3 on the left, a fractured left clavicle, a fractured right clavicle, and crushed fingers on his left hand.

Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons / GNU Free Documentation License
**This is not the actual cave.**

In October, 2009, a 49 year-old photographer who fell 30 feet from the top of a waterfall used his SPOT Satellite Messenger 911 button to call for help. Dozens of mostly volunteer rescuers took 20 hours to reach the man and then bring him up a mountain to a cemetery, where a vehicle met them. The injured photographer was then transported to a clearing where a helicopter could land and take him for treatment of numerous broken bones.

Quotes from Matt Scharper:

"[T]hat's the unfortunate thing about these devices because the concept itself is absolutely great. The problem is that people are taking chances, people are taking risks that they wouldn't normally take had they not had these devices on their person."

"[W]hen they push the help button or the 911 button - we have no idea what the emergency is, and it's just like a 911 hang-up call. We don't know what it is, so we're vested with a response to get in there, see what the problem is and take care of it."

Read the full interview from NPR's All Things Considered with Robert Siegel on NPR.org.