Canyoneering
Emergency - Contacts
Before venturing out into the wilderness set up
an emergency contact for yourself. Your emergency contact can be a
friend, family member or anyone you trust. Let your emergency
contact know where you are going, what you will be doing and a
general time line for what you expect out of your trip. Be a
little more specific than simply giving them a canyon name.
The more information you give the faster you can be located if a
call needs to be made. You should
also discuss when to start worrying (or panicking depending on the people involved) and what to do about it if it
happens. If your emergency contact decides it is time to call
the authorities, they should be armed
with a list of who to contact. You could always leave it up to
your emergency contact to look up the numbers IF they end up needing
them. But if you are stuck and in need of rescue, do you
really want your emergency contact guessing who to call. Do your emergency contact a favor and give them
the required information.
When you make a call for a missing friend, if all you have is the
name of a canyon, do not expect authorities to know where your friends
are. A lot of the canyoneering canyon names are not
on maps and the names are only meaningful within the canyon
community. Give as much information as you can and be sure to
tell them your friends were canyoneering a technical route.
Note / Warning:
In almost all cases it is a bad idea to start a search and or rescue
during darkness. Doing so would likely endanger those
performing the search and or rescue. If you find your self in
a bad situation where a SAR call has been made for you, you will
likely be spending the night right where you are, since any rescue
attempts will not begin until the following day. This idea
should serve as a warning and be that little voice in your head that
says...... "Always be prepared for an emergency bivy".
911
If you have no idea who to call the first choice would be 911. You
can give the operator names, dates, places, activities, etc. The
dispatcher can help get the right people notified and put you in
touch with them. Again if you have nothing more than a canyon
name you may find no help at all.
Public Lands
If you are calling for someone that is on public lands you can
contact authorities related to that area. Visitor centers,
ranger stations, BLM or Forest Service offices and the list goes on.
County Sheriff
If you are calling for someone that is on public lands that have no
phone numbers to call, a good place to start is the Sheriff of the
county they are in. The County Sheriff should have a good idea
who to call after you tell them where your friends are.
The contacts here are not intended to be an all inclusive one stop
shop for all emergency numbers related to canyoneering. This
list is intended to be a good starting point. As I venture
into new areas myself I will try to keep this list updated.
If you find any numbers are wrong or need updating please contact me and let me know. If you feel a number should be
added feel free to tell me that as well.
If you do not know who to call
911 |
| If you are calling for someone on public lands, try to locate an emergency number for that specific area. If you can not find a number for the specific area, call the county sheriff for the area. This list might help in locating these numbers.
If you can not find a number for the county sheriff or the public land emergency number, the best number to use is the trusty old 911. The 911 operator can help get in touch with the proper people.
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Garfield County Sheriff - Utah
(435) 676-2678 |
| 24 Hours a Day 7 Days a Week.
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Iron County Sheriff - Utah
(435) 867-7500 |
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Kane County Sheriff - Utah
(435) 644-4916 |
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San Juan County Sheriff - Utah
(435)-587-2237 |
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Washington County Sheriff - Utah
(435) 656-6500 |
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Wayne County 911 Dispatch - Utah (direct number)
(800) 356-8757 |
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Wayne County Sheriff - Utah
(435) 836-1308 |
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Capitol Reef National Park Visitor Center - Utah
(435) 425-3791 |
| Capitol Reef has limited resources. First point of contact should be the County Sheriff of what ever county your party is in (If you don't know try both).
The northern end of Capitol Reef National Park is covered by the Wayne County sheriff. The southern end of Capitol Reef National Park is covered by the Garfield County.
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Zion Back Country Desk - Utah
(435) 772-0170 |
| If calling for someone inside the park, first try the Zion Back Country Desk during business hours.
If calling for someone outside the park, call the county sheriff for the area they are in. North, south and west of the park would be Washington County while east of the park would fall in Kane County.
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Zion National Park - Utah (after hours emergency number)
(435) 772-3322 |
| If it is after business hours or you can not get an answer at the Zion Back Country Desk, call the Zion After Hours Emergency Number.
If calling for someone outside the park, call the county sheriff for the area they are in. North, south and west of the park would be Washington County while east of the park would fall in Kane County.
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Clark County Sheriff - Nevada
(702) 838-3271 |
| The Mount Charleston, Valley of Fire, Red Rock and the Eldorado Mountain areas have limited resources. Emergency calls for these areas should be made to the Clark County Sheriff or 911.
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Lake Mead National Recreation Area - Nevada
(xxx) xxx-xxxx |
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