16 ms·

Missing hiker ignored calls from rescuers because he didn’t recognise the number

43 points by alibarber 5y ago

jmnicolas 5y ago
It could happen to me too since I always put my phone in airplane mode when hiking: I really don't want to be bothered by notifications, or unsolicited calls while I'm enjoying nature.
this_is_not_you 5y ago
Seems fair given the state of robocalls. In another likely scenario: Missing hiker without phone reception finally reaches the top of a mountain. The phone shows 2% battery and 1 bar. Finally! Immediately, his phone starts ringing. He doesn't know the number but dehydrated, hungry and with his last spark of hope he picks up. A familiar voice begins to speak: "Hello, I heard you have been in an accident that wasn't your fault..."
- jmnicolas 5y ago
  Here in France they would try to sell you solar panels ;)
- ndepoel 5y ago
  That was my first thought as well. The number of scam calls and robocalls is such a problem these days that ignoring calls from unknown numbers has become a habit. I'm usually polite enough to google the number and call back if it's something that deserves attention, but I can imagine that that's probably not your first priority when you're busy hiking on top of a mountain.
- dredmorbius 5y ago
  This. The state of PSTN direct-dialed voic comms in much of the US is such that legitimate phone traffic is 1/2 to 1/10 of all received calls. Channel saturation and abuse is such that people ignore phone calls, and quite often voicemail. If they have voice service at all. Telephone service by any description in the form of "anyone, anywhere, can connect to any one, anywhere, at any time" is in increasing danger of abandonment simply because of nuisance and malicious harm costs. I've had repeated dicussions with individuals and businesses who are constantly pestered by unwanted calls, cannot distinguish legitimate from illegitimate traffic (see "Deep Fakes" voice impersonation being used in a recent bank fraud case, impersonating the CEO --- I've known people who've had fraudulent calls claiming to be known contacts), as well as endless scams. The industry aware of this and raised the issue years ago. They do nothing about it: [S]ince mid-2015, a consortium of engineers from phone carriers and others in the telecom industry have worked on a way to [stop call-spoofing], worried that spam phone calls could eventually endanger the whole system. “We’re getting to the point where nobody trusts the phone network,” says Jim McEachern, principal technologist at the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS.) “When they stop trusting the phone network, they stop using it.” https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/05/how-to-stop-spam-robocalls-with-stir-shaken.html https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/05/how-to-stop-spam-rob... We've reached the point that people in possible need of rescue ignore attempts at contact, and ... with credible reason.
AndrewDucker 5y ago
Hmm. The early parts of the article (and the headline) says "calls", but further down it says "calls, texts and voicemail". Surely if you get a text saying "Hi, it's mountain rescue, you haven't reappeared, wassup?" you'd take that seriously?
- sideshowb 5y ago
  Do you read every text you get the moment it arrives?
  - dukeyukey 5y ago
    90% of texts are read within 3 seconds of arriving on your phone, with a 98% open rate altogether: https://blog.adobe.com/en/publish/2015/07/27/marketing-with-98-percent-read-rate-and-10-more-compelling-stats.html#gs.e2scqg https://blog.adobe.com/en/publish/2015/07/27/marketing-with-... So yes, I do.
    - GekkePrutser 5y ago
      But also by hikers? When I hike I have my phone tucked away. I hike to explore nature and take a break from the digital world. I use it as a satnav sometimes but I try to rely on my sense of direction unless I'm really stuck. It helps build situational awareness and enjoyment of the environment. Phones are not that reliable in such areas anyway and I carry a Garmin InReach satellite communicator for emergencies. Also, not sure where this happened but here in Europe nobody uses texts anymore. The only ones I get are spam. Everyone uses WhatsApp or similar services. I have about 30 unread texts on my phone right now and they're all spam. I have notifications for them turned off :) Edit: ah I see it's in the US. I heard texts are more common there still because of iMessage being used a lot and falling back to SMS.
      - TeMPOraL 5y ago
        > Also, not sure where this happened but here in Europe nobody uses texts anymore. The only ones I get are spam. Everyone uses WhatsApp or similar services. Depends on country. Here in Poland, SMS is still widely used, though WhatsApp is gaining popularity at an annoyingly high rate. I still get some real messages, but >80% of texts I get are delivery notifications, appointment reminders and 2FA codes.
dustintrex 5y ago
The key here is that the hiker didn't consider themselves sufficiently lost to require rescue: > The hiker told authorities he had lost his way around nightfall and “bounced around on to different trails trying to locate the proper trailhead” ... the man reported having “no idea” anyone was out looking for him. You'd think they would have noticed the text messages or gotten a bit curious after the Nth call from the same unknown number, but if this all happened at night, his phone may have been in silent mode.
- cyxxon 5y ago
  Why at night? My phone is on silent mode all the time unless I am expecting a call (say, because it was discussed in advance). Especially if I am out hiking and people know about that because I am doing that to get away from modern office life and enjoying nature without distractions.
  - lethologica 5y ago
    Good for you? What’s with this virtue signalling?
  - fps_doug 5y ago
    But they said "didn't recognize the number", not "missed all calls and texts". I'm from Europe so I don't know how prevalent robocalls are; this story really sounds crazy to me. Sure, everybody has different life circumstances, etc. Maybe this guy was somewhat of a maverick. He said he didn't feel that lost and tried to get back on their own. But I still can't fathom how it never crossed his mind that someone might be looking for them, unless, as initially said, you get a dozen robocalls every day and this amount of calls and texts wasn't out of the ordinary to him.
    - cyxxon 5y ago
      You got a point there. I could still imagine them checking the phone as it first rings with an unknown number, turning off the ringer because they didn't want to be bothered by it, and then ignoring it due to the ringer being off now, maybe?
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
stichers 5y ago
I'm going with this interpretation https://truthbook.com/stories/funny-god/the-drowning-man https://truthbook.com/stories/funny-god/the-drowning-man
d--b 5y ago
Well texting would have helped.
- polymatter 5y ago
  The article suggests they did text
- jgilias 5y ago
  The article says that they did text, as well as leave voicemail.
dmortin 5y ago
He didn't read the texts either? It takes a second, they are right on the phone's notification screen, assuming he had a smartphone.
- sideshowb 5y ago
  I often choose not to read texts. It's not the time that's the problem, it's the engagement with responsibilities I'm supposed to be taking a break from.
  - dmortin 5y ago
    I guess a hiker stops from time to time to rest, so surely he has time to check the texts.
aosaigh 5y ago
As a hiker and someone who is aware of the difficulty and frustration in mountain rescue teams being called out on avoidable rescues, I don't think there is enough detail here to immediately point blame at the hiker. It mentions that the hiker didn't return "according to their itinerary". There's a big difference between telling your spouse or close friend "if you don't hear from me by 7pm call mountain rescue" and a receptionist from a lodge noticing you didn't return that evening and assuming you're missing. It says the hiker didn't realise anyone was looking for them and "bounced around from trail to trail" finding their way back to their car eventually the next morning. They could have easily called mountain rescue if they felt they were hopelessly lost. Instead, it sounds like this was an experienced lone hiker who was comfortable becoming benighted on a mountain and able to look after themselves and find their way back safely. This person could have had their phone in their backpack and might have also received 10s of other calls or texts alongside. While briefly checking their phone they missed the significance of the ones they didn't recognise. Remember that most people are out there to get away from it all - looking at your phone is usually the last thing you want to do.
vegancap 5y ago
Last thing you want in an emergency is DataDog calling you
another-dave 5y ago
“One notable take-away is that the subject ignored repeated phone calls from us because they didn’t recognise the number,” the agency added. The notable take-away from that for me is: why aren't these agencies using registered caller/sender IDs for calls and texts? Even if he'd ignore a call from '958-2580', he'd likely answer one from LAKE COUNTY MOUNTAIN RESCUE. Also, as someone mentioned in the comments to their statement — it's interesting that mountain rescue was able to connect to him with multiple calls, texts & voicemail but the person who reported the hiker missing (partner/hotel or whoever) didn't try?
- jrootabega 5y ago
  > The notable take-away from that for me is: why aren't these agencies using registered caller/sender IDs for calls and texts? For calls that you actually see coming in live, I think that would have worked. But for text or missed calls, I think it just isn't true. I think many of us are conditioned to just treat everything that isn't a known contact as garbage and block our brains from even really seeing it. Robocallers and scammers did this to us. I'd say the only real solution is that whoever has your phone number and would be the one to report you missing should make it clear that they are going to do that, and tell you who would be contacting you if so. Make sure your phone will notify you if those entities then try to contact you, even if you have silenced it in general.
throwawayay02 5y ago
Reminds me of the stories of people that just up and go on holiday and the neighbors setting a missing persons manhunt.
yodsanklai 5y ago
The original title is > Hiker lost on US mountain ignored calls from rescuers because he didn’t recognise the number Why "he" has been changed to "they"? As a non-native English speaker this made me confused when reading the title ("who didn't recognise the number? the rescuers? the hiker?). Edit: If gender neutrality is deemed important, a new pronoun should be introduced to avoid ambiguity.
- wodenokoto 5y ago
  “They” has been gender neutral singular for longer than you have been learning English. It’s use, however, seems to have been on a rise. This is no different than “you” also being both singular and plural.
  - chinathrow 5y ago
    But OP is right that there is no need to change from he to they - why should it?
    - genewitch 5y ago
      Is the gender of the hiker important? They can be plural, and so, the hiker should have been referenced in reference to their phone, rather than how they ignored the calls.
      - TeMPOraL 5y ago
        Is them being a hiker important? Is the fact that it was rescuers calling important? If we go this way too far, then the story could be summarized as "A person ignored calls from unknown numbers".
        genewitch 5y ago
        "Alone" coming soon, starring lou diamond phillips, rated R
        5y ago
huh_orly 5y ago
They didn't recognise the number? The whole plurality of the single hiker?
- naikrovek 5y ago
  "They" isn't necessarily plural.
  - huh_orly 5y ago
    Yeah since like two years ago. We all know why it's used as such. And no, people don't need to partake in your shared delusion.
    - naikrovek 5y ago
      what shared delusion would that be? using "they" to refer to a single person has been happening for far, far more than two years, by the way. more like 500 years, probably more. have you not ever said something like "I bet they will love this" or "I hope they are ok" when talking about a single person? because I have been using that word in that way since started talking. your chosen use of a word is not the only way a word can be used.

43 points by alibarber 5y ago

It could happen to me too since I always put my phone in airplane mode when hiking: I really don't want to be bothered by notifications, or unsolicited calls while I'm enjoying nature.

this_is_not_you 5y ago

Seems fair given the state of robocalls. In another likely scenario: Missing hiker without phone reception finally reaches the top of a mountain. The phone shows 2% battery and 1 bar. Finally! Immediately, his phone starts ringing. He doesn't know the number but dehydrated, hungry and with his last spark of hope he picks up. A familiar voice begins to speak: "Hello, I heard you have been in an accident that wasn't your fault..."

jmnicolas 5y ago
Here in France they would try to sell you solar panels ;)
ndepoel 5y ago
That was my first thought as well. The number of scam calls and robocalls is such a problem these days that ignoring calls from unknown numbers has become a habit. I'm usually polite enough to google the number and call back if it's something that deserves attention, but I can imagine that that's probably not your first priority when you're busy hiking on top of a mountain.
dredmorbius 5y ago
This. The state of PSTN direct-dialed voic comms in much of the US is such that legitimate phone traffic is 1/2 to 1/10 of all received calls. Channel saturation and abuse is such that people ignore phone calls, and quite often voicemail. If they have voice service at all. Telephone service by any description in the form of "anyone, anywhere, can connect to any one, anywhere, at any time" is in increasing danger of abandonment simply because of nuisance and malicious harm costs. I've had repeated dicussions with individuals and businesses who are constantly pestered by unwanted calls, cannot distinguish legitimate from illegitimate traffic (see "Deep Fakes" voice impersonation being used in a recent bank fraud case, impersonating the CEO --- I've known people who've had fraudulent calls claiming to be known contacts), as well as endless scams. The industry aware of this and raised the issue years ago. They do nothing about it: [S]ince mid-2015, a consortium of engineers from phone carriers and others in the telecom industry have worked on a way to [stop call-spoofing], worried that spam phone calls could eventually endanger the whole system. “We’re getting to the point where nobody trusts the phone network,” says Jim McEachern, principal technologist at the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS.) “When they stop trusting the phone network, they stop using it.” https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/05/how-to-stop-spam-robocalls-with-stir-shaken.html https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/05/how-to-stop-spam-rob... We've reached the point that people in possible need of rescue ignore attempts at contact, and ... with credible reason.

AndrewDucker 5y ago

Hmm. The early parts of the article (and the headline) says "calls", but further down it says "calls, texts and voicemail". Surely if you get a text saying "Hi, it's mountain rescue, you haven't reappeared, wassup?" you'd take that seriously?

sideshowb 5y ago
Do you read every text you get the moment it arrives?
- dukeyukey 5y ago
  90% of texts are read within 3 seconds of arriving on your phone, with a 98% open rate altogether: https://blog.adobe.com/en/publish/2015/07/27/marketing-with-98-percent-read-rate-and-10-more-compelling-stats.html#gs.e2scqg https://blog.adobe.com/en/publish/2015/07/27/marketing-with-... So yes, I do.
  - GekkePrutser 5y ago
    But also by hikers? When I hike I have my phone tucked away. I hike to explore nature and take a break from the digital world. I use it as a satnav sometimes but I try to rely on my sense of direction unless I'm really stuck. It helps build situational awareness and enjoyment of the environment. Phones are not that reliable in such areas anyway and I carry a Garmin InReach satellite communicator for emergencies. Also, not sure where this happened but here in Europe nobody uses texts anymore. The only ones I get are spam. Everyone uses WhatsApp or similar services. I have about 30 unread texts on my phone right now and they're all spam. I have notifications for them turned off :) Edit: ah I see it's in the US. I heard texts are more common there still because of iMessage being used a lot and falling back to SMS.
    - TeMPOraL 5y ago
      > Also, not sure where this happened but here in Europe nobody uses texts anymore. The only ones I get are spam. Everyone uses WhatsApp or similar services. Depends on country. Here in Poland, SMS is still widely used, though WhatsApp is gaining popularity at an annoyingly high rate. I still get some real messages, but >80% of texts I get are delivery notifications, appointment reminders and 2FA codes.

dustintrex 5y ago

The key here is that the hiker didn't consider themselves sufficiently lost to require rescue: > The hiker told authorities he had lost his way around nightfall and “bounced around on to different trails trying to locate the proper trailhead” ... the man reported having “no idea” anyone was out looking for him. You'd think they would have noticed the text messages or gotten a bit curious after the Nth call from the same unknown number, but if this all happened at night, his phone may have been in silent mode.

cyxxon 5y ago
Why at night? My phone is on silent mode all the time unless I am expecting a call (say, because it was discussed in advance). Especially if I am out hiking and people know about that because I am doing that to get away from modern office life and enjoying nature without distractions.
- lethologica 5y ago
  Good for you? What’s with this virtue signalling?
- fps_doug 5y ago
  But they said "didn't recognize the number", not "missed all calls and texts". I'm from Europe so I don't know how prevalent robocalls are; this story really sounds crazy to me. Sure, everybody has different life circumstances, etc. Maybe this guy was somewhat of a maverick. He said he didn't feel that lost and tried to get back on their own. But I still can't fathom how it never crossed his mind that someone might be looking for them, unless, as initially said, you get a dozen robocalls every day and this amount of calls and texts wasn't out of the ordinary to him.
  - cyxxon 5y ago
    You got a point there. I could still imagine them checking the phone as it first rings with an unknown number, turning off the ringer because they didn't want to be bothered by it, and then ignoring it due to the ringer being off now, maybe?

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

stichers 5y ago

I'm going with this interpretation https://truthbook.com/stories/funny-god/the-drowning-man https://truthbook.com/stories/funny-god/the-drowning-man

d--b 5y ago

Well texting would have helped.

polymatter 5y ago
The article suggests they did text
jgilias 5y ago
The article says that they did text, as well as leave voicemail.

dmortin 5y ago

He didn't read the texts either? It takes a second, they are right on the phone's notification screen, assuming he had a smartphone.

sideshowb 5y ago
I often choose not to read texts. It's not the time that's the problem, it's the engagement with responsibilities I'm supposed to be taking a break from.
- dmortin 5y ago
  I guess a hiker stops from time to time to rest, so surely he has time to check the texts.

aosaigh 5y ago

As a hiker and someone who is aware of the difficulty and frustration in mountain rescue teams being called out on avoidable rescues, I don't think there is enough detail here to immediately point blame at the hiker. It mentions that the hiker didn't return "according to their itinerary". There's a big difference between telling your spouse or close friend "if you don't hear from me by 7pm call mountain rescue" and a receptionist from a lodge noticing you didn't return that evening and assuming you're missing. It says the hiker didn't realise anyone was looking for them and "bounced around from trail to trail" finding their way back to their car eventually the next morning. They could have easily called mountain rescue if they felt they were hopelessly lost. Instead, it sounds like this was an experienced lone hiker who was comfortable becoming benighted on a mountain and able to look after themselves and find their way back safely. This person could have had their phone in their backpack and might have also received 10s of other calls or texts alongside. While briefly checking their phone they missed the significance of the ones they didn't recognise. Remember that most people are out there to get away from it all - looking at your phone is usually the last thing you want to do.

vegancap 5y ago

Last thing you want in an emergency is DataDog calling you

another-dave 5y ago

“One notable take-away is that the subject ignored repeated phone calls from us because they didn’t recognise the number,” the agency added. The notable take-away from that for me is: why aren't these agencies using registered caller/sender IDs for calls and texts? Even if he'd ignore a call from '958-2580', he'd likely answer one from LAKE COUNTY MOUNTAIN RESCUE. Also, as someone mentioned in the comments to their statement — it's interesting that mountain rescue was able to connect to him with multiple calls, texts & voicemail but the person who reported the hiker missing (partner/hotel or whoever) didn't try?

jrootabega 5y ago
> The notable take-away from that for me is: why aren't these agencies using registered caller/sender IDs for calls and texts? For calls that you actually see coming in live, I think that would have worked. But for text or missed calls, I think it just isn't true. I think many of us are conditioned to just treat everything that isn't a known contact as garbage and block our brains from even really seeing it. Robocallers and scammers did this to us. I'd say the only real solution is that whoever has your phone number and would be the one to report you missing should make it clear that they are going to do that, and tell you who would be contacting you if so. Make sure your phone will notify you if those entities then try to contact you, even if you have silenced it in general.

throwawayay02 5y ago

Reminds me of the stories of people that just up and go on holiday and the neighbors setting a missing persons manhunt.

yodsanklai 5y ago

The original title is > Hiker lost on US mountain ignored calls from rescuers because he didn’t recognise the number Why "he" has been changed to "they"? As a non-native English speaker this made me confused when reading the title ("who didn't recognise the number? the rescuers? the hiker?). Edit: If gender neutrality is deemed important, a new pronoun should be introduced to avoid ambiguity.

wodenokoto 5y ago
“They” has been gender neutral singular for longer than you have been learning English. It’s use, however, seems to have been on a rise. This is no different than “you” also being both singular and plural.
- chinathrow 5y ago
  But OP is right that there is no need to change from he to they - why should it?
  - genewitch 5y ago
    Is the gender of the hiker important? They can be plural, and so, the hiker should have been referenced in reference to their phone, rather than how they ignored the calls.
    - TeMPOraL 5y ago
      Is them being a hiker important? Is the fact that it was rescuers calling important? If we go this way too far, then the story could be summarized as "A person ignored calls from unknown numbers".
      - genewitch 5y ago
        "Alone" coming soon, starring lou diamond phillips, rated R
      - 5y ago

huh_orly 5y ago

They didn't recognise the number? The whole plurality of the single hiker?

naikrovek 5y ago
"They" isn't necessarily plural.
- huh_orly 5y ago
  Yeah since like two years ago. We all know why it's used as such. And no, people don't need to partake in your shared delusion.
  - naikrovek 5y ago
    what shared delusion would that be? using "they" to refer to a single person has been happening for far, far more than two years, by the way. more like 500 years, probably more. have you not ever said something like "I bet they will love this" or "I hope they are ok" when talking about a single person? because I have been using that word in that way since started talking. your chosen use of a word is not the only way a word can be used.