With hiking accidents in national parks on the rise, the Ministry of the Interior yesterday urged people to train, prepare and educate themselves before heading to the mountains.
Statistics from the Construction and Planning Agency showed that the number of permits issued for visitors to ecological reserves in national parks totaled 295,731 last year, an increase of 71,854, or 32.1 percent, from the previous year, the ministry said in a news release.
During the same period, the number of emergency incidents at the parks increased by 71, or 61.7 percent, to 186, with people getting injured or lost, altitude sickness and falling being the most common types of emergency, the ministry said.
Photo provided by Yushan National Park Management Office
The Taroko National Park saw the largest increase in emergency incidents last year, rising 91.1 percent from 45 to 86 cases, the ministry said.
The sharp growth suggests that many hikers lacked experience and preparation, it said.
People should prepare by training, getting the right equipment, be properly informed, develop risk-consciousness and keep safety regulations in mind before going on a climbing trip, it said.
Climbers and hikers should prepare headlamps, whistles, altitude sickness drugs, GPS-enabled communications equipment and buy insurance, it said, adding that they should bring helmets, snowshoes, and ice axes or tracking poles if snow is forecast.
They should do a triple weather checklist, it said.
This means doing pre-trip research on meteorological and traffic information, double-checking equipment and foul weather procedures with guides and other climbers before an ascent and agreeing on a predetermined point of return in case of unanticipated foul weather, the ministry said.
It is particularly important that hikers be flexible and know when to cancel an ascent, and reassemble at the point of return should foul weather occur in the middle of an ascent, it added.
Hikers are urged to be environmentally conscious and practice “traceless mountain climbing” by making appropriate preparations, setting camp at sustainable sites, collecting waste, leaving the environment in the same state as they found it, minimize the use of fire, be respectful of plant and animal life, and be considerate of others, it said.
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