Mr. Speaker, in a land as vast and untamed as the Northwest Territories, ground search and rescue services are key to any emergency where persons are missing or in distress on land or inland waterways. Ground search and rescue efforts are multi-jurisdictional, relying on cooperation from many different governments, agencies, and civilians, so that trained professionals, often in volunteer capacities, can be properly equipped and dispatched to get to work saving lives.
There are many reasons why people go missing or end up needing help on the land every year. Many travel long distances in between remote communities, practice traditional lifestyles of hunting and trapping, or simply looking to experience the beauty of the North's natural environment. In 2018, for example, there were 24 ground search and rescue incidents spread out across every region of the Northwest Territories.
To keep our communities safe, the North needs strong ground search and rescue operations to ensure every incident is responded to adequately and resolved positively. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, the GNWT's search and rescue system review final report completed in 2022 came to a startling conclusion, that ground search and rescue services in the NWT lag far behind other provinces and territories and outlined concerning deficiencies in how these services are supported and maintained. Also concerning is the fact that this report has not yet been publicly released despite being finalized years ago.
Thankfully, I have gotten ahold of this report thanks to the diligent work of a constituent and can provide a short summary. There's no mandate of those critical findings. There's no mandate for municipal and Indigenous governments to have provisions for ground search and rescue teams. There are no mandates for departments to expand search and rescue capacity. The NWT provides no training or equipment for search and rescue teams. And there's only one team trained to the proper standards for the entire territory, which operates out of Yellowknife, and they are forced to fundraise on their own to get the resources they need.
Mr. Speaker, these realities force other agencies such as the RCMP to operate outside of their scope during search and rescue operations. Hunters and trappers associations and associations of the Rangers do their best to contribute, but they're not adequately trained or equipped. There's much more to say on this subject, and it's time for the Minister to make this report public and begin following its urgent recommendations before more lives are lost. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Range Lake. Members' statements. Member from the Sahtu.
