On 21 Jan 2005 06:19:31 -0800, wrote:

Rescue Crews

Yes they condider their own safety. Howver, we've all seen photos and
videos of rescuers that are still taking substantial risk to their
lives to bail out some idiot. Surely you've seen photos of helicopters
flying in mountains in marginal conditions to rescue someone. Or
photos of the Coast Guard sending a rescue craft out in extreme weather
to try to save people. The story shown in Perfect Storm is a classic
example. A Coast Guard helicopter was sent into a huricane to rescue 3
idiots on a sailboat that never should have been there. The chopper
had to ditch because of the storm, one crew member was seriously
injured, another died.

Rescue teams mostly do it because they love the activity themselves
(be it sailing, skiing, climbing, caving - whatever) and want to
provide a support service to the whole activity.

Every year a couple of stupid tourists get airlifted off the mountains
in Scotland [1] wearing flipflops and Hawaiian shirts, having got
caught in a storm when the weather turned. The rescue crews are
constantly asked "Should these people be fined/licensed/banned". The
answer is always the same - the mountains are there for everyone to
enjoy, and rescuing a few idiots is a small price to pay for providing
open access.

[1] They're not particularly big mountains, but they can be quite
treachourous.
--
Champ