Hot springs save BC men from icy death

by Kaitlin | December 14, 2007 at 10:02 am

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To residents of the East Kootenays in BC, natural hot springs tend to be a luxury as opposed to a lifesaver. But the other night when loggers Matt Brunham and Dustin Tily crashed into Whiteswan Lake near Cranbrook, the hot springs may have made the difference between life and death.

The two men were the last to leave their logging camp, and when they crashed into the freezing lake, Tily managed to pull himself free. When he realized that his coworker was still in the truck, however, he headed back in to free Brunham.

With temperatures as low as -20 celsius (-4 Fahrenheit) the other night, the men knew they needed to warm up quickly or they might die. They decided to make the hike to the nearby Whiteswan hot springs--a move which saved their lives.

"We had to walk, we knew we would freeze if we stayed, so we walked eight and a half kilometres to the hot springs."

Although the hot springs were a welcome sight and saved their lives, getting in wasn't easy.

"It was painful (getting in the hot water) but it was good, too," Brunham said.

Tily and Brunham were rescued around 4:30 a.m. Brunham was grateful to Tily that he got to go home to his wife and two little boys.