A snowmobiler has been rescued after spending a night stranded in the cold in B.C.'s Coquihalla Lake area.
The 28-year-old Abbotsford man became separated from two friends while snowmobiling north of Hope around 7:30 p.m. on Sunday. He was located Monday morning, cold and wet but otherwise fine.
"This is a happy end to what could have been another tragic outcome in the B.C. backcountry," RCMP Cpl. Lea-Anne Dunlop said in a release.
The missing snowmobiler's friends called 911 when they were unable to locate him, but a high avalanche risk deterred RCMP and search-and-rescue crews from launching a ground search Sunday night.
Searchers tried tracking down the missing man by air, but he could not be located until rescuers were cleared to set out on snowmobiles Monday morning.
Emergency workers are warning anyone heading out into B.C.'s backcountry to be prepared with survival kits and avalanche gear. All of B.C.'s south coast and eastern mountainous regions are currently listed as high risk for avalanches.
Sections of the Trans-Canada Highway in eastern B.C. remain closed because of the avalanche threat, and one stretch of the road may not be open again until Wednesday.
That section lies on either side of Golden; however, another closed section between Revelstoke and Glacier National Park could reopen late Monday afternoon.
Meanwhile, the avalanche threat has forced the closure of sections of Highways 31, 31-A and 23 in southeast B.C.
In northern B.C., an avalanche has also closed Highway 97 in both directions about half way between Prince George and Chetwynd.
With files from The Canadian Press
