They say that desperate times call for desperate measures, and when someone finds themselves in a dire situation, they might resort to unconventional methods to escape. This was the case for an individual who, trapped in a remote area with no help in sight, decided to take an extreme approach. He cut off the electricity to the entire region in an attempt to draw attention to his plight and get rescued, and remarkably, this unconventional strategy worked.
The incident took place in 2010 in the wilderness of northern Saskatchewan, Canada. A man who was on a boat on a nearby lake was caught off guard by a severe weather event. Temperatures plummeted below freezing, and snow began to fall, leaving him stranded in the wilderness with no means of communication with the outside world. His situation became life-threatening after several days of isolation, and in his desperation, he decided to take drastic action.
Armed with an axe, the man went to four electrical poles in the area and cut the lines, resulting in a complete power outage in the surrounding communities. This outage left several hundred people in the communities of La Loche and Hatchet Lake Denesuline without electricity for over 30 hours. This prompted the affected residents to contact the power company, SaskPower, to report the problem and express their frustration.
The power company responded promptly, dispatching a repair crew and hiring a helicopter to investigate the cause of the outage. To their surprise, they found the stranded man in poor health. They contacted the police and emergency services to rescue him.
Following the incident, James Parker, a spokesperson for SaskPower, stated that while the problem was resolved and the man was fortunately rescued, the company typically would have sought compensation for the damage caused. However, given the man’s dire circumstances, they chose to overlook the incident. Ed Penney, one of the rescue team leaders in the area, advised that anyone traveling in unfamiliar northern regions should carry survival gear, including matches, and that the best course of action is to stay put, build a large fire, and wait for help to arrive.
