Series of Boy Scout Accidents Highlights Why "Guide to Safe Scouting" MUST Be Followed

Over to first person.

As a longtime supporter of the Boy Scout program, I am stunned and dismayed to hear of a rash of accidents and mishaps that have led to Scouts being lost, seriously injured or dying while at summer camp, while camping with their troops, or while on Scouting activities.

Most of the country knows about the Boy Scout who was lost in the mountains of Utah for four days, finally being located by searchers who never gave up hope that they would find 11 year-old Brennan Hawkins. It was only through the grace of God and a series of fortunate events that led to Brennan's safe recovery.

In Yellowstone National Park a few days after Brennan's miraculous recovery, another Boy Scout went missing after falling into fast-moving water. The Scout was with his fellow Scouts pushing logs into the river when a log clipped his legs and he tumbled into the river. Searchers and family members have given up hope that 13 year-old Luke Sanburg is still alive.

In Boise, Idaho, a 17 year-old member of a Venture Crew fell to his death after losing his grip on a zip line. This happened a week ago while the Scout was at a special summer camp for Venture Scouts. Something malfunctioned on the zip line itself and it caused the trolley assembly to jerk to a sudden halt, causing Jeffery Kenneth Lloyd to lose his grip on the handgrips and fall to the ground, landing on his back.

In Scouting, there is an all-important document called the "Guide to Safe Scouting." In each of these instances, there was a failure to follow what was in them. In the case of Brennan's loss and recovery, the buddy system failed when his buddy left him at the climbing tower to take off his harness on his own.

In the case of the Yellowstone situation, it is still uncertain if the pushing of logs into the river was part of some kind of an event, or if the Scouts were doing it on their own. Safe Swim Defense rules may have been overlooked there; or it could have been a freak accident. In any case, no one told the Scouts to stop doing what they were doing. Where was the Qualified Supervision, which is the first point of the Safe Swim Defense?

In the case of the zip line in Idaho, Scouting regs call for helmets and harnesses to be used if a participant is more than six feet off the ground. It falls under COPE staff supervision (Challenging Outdoor Personal Experience--basically a high ropes obstacle course). As a current BSA COPE Instructor, I'm very familiar with these guidelines. Why was this Scout not attached with rope to the trolley assembly on this zip line? He fell more than fifteen feet so this should have been supervised under COPE rules.

It is uncertain if a nearby church group was running this event, or if it was a Boy Scout-related event, but someone is responsible for not taking proper safety precautions which led to the death of this Scout.

With summer well underway, Scout leaders need to be sure that they are making sure that the "Guide to Safe Scouting" is being followed in all respects.

Kids shouldn't be dying at camp.