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OUR TEAM
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HISTORY
Lion’s Bay
has long been a starting point for day hikers and mountaineers,
both local and from all over the Lower Mainland of Vancouver, making
day hikes and short climbing expeditions into the peaks above. Inevitably,
there were those who were injured and lost and ad hoc groups of
residents would often help with the rescue efforts. Disaster struck
the community in 1982 when Alberta creek, which runs right through
the north side of the village, flooded its banks and carried away
several homes and two young residents. The community involvement
in the flood response led to the formation of Lions Bay Search and
Rescue (LBSAR) in 1983. Made up mainly of local mountaineers, members
of UBC’s Varsity Outdoors Club, and backcountry enthusiasts
with a taste for adventure and a sense of community spirit, the
group centered around the tireless efforts of Marcel Andrie, who
incorporated the group in 1983 and initially ran the organization
out of the basement of his house.
The teams early efforts
were village based, but they soon started moving further a field.
The team moved into technical rope rescue after its work doing rigging
for Expo 86, and has maintained a strong proficiency in this field
since. In the late 1980’s, LBSAR started working closely with
neighbouring teams Squamish and North Shore Rescue in mutual aid
scenarios and became a trusted ally in difficult mountain rescue
callouts that stretched those team’s resources. In 1992, the
team found a permanent base when it moved into its current home
in the Village emergency building, sharing space with the Fire Department
and BC ambulance service.
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