QAUSUITTUQ/RESOLUTE - A Resolute hunter who was trapped for three nights on an ice floe drifting away from the community was rescued on Jan. 25.

David Idlout, 39, was brought back into town at approximately 3 p.m. CST on Jan. 25, according to RCMP Const. Ted Munro.

Other than being cold and fatigued, Idlout seemed "happy to get home to his family," Munro said.

Idlout became trapped on a piece of ice that broke away from the floe edge while he was seal hunting on Jan. 22.

He used a satellite phone to call his wife. Local RCMP then contacted the Canadian Military Joint Rescue Co-ordination centre in Trenton, Ont.

A Cormorant helicopter from Greenwood, N.S., along with a Hercules from Winnipeg were sent to Iqaluit on the evening of Jan. 22, according to Capt. Paul Spaleta with the JRCC. But bad weather in Resolute and mechanical problems initially delayed the rescue, Spaleta said.

"Basically weather has played a factor in trying to get to this individual and a couple of maintenance issues when they got to Iqaluit," Spaleta said.

The Hercules managed to reach Idlout on Jan. 23 and dropped supplies including a tent and an emergency locator beacon to track his position.

Another rescue attempt was made on Jan. 24, but bad weather prevented the helicopter from getting any further than Clyde River, Spaleta said.

Idlout spent a total of three days floating farther away from the community. When he was rescued on Jan. 25, he had drifted more than 45 km, Munro said.

"In total he drifted just over 45 km east of town," he said. "He was travelling in an easterly direction toward Baffin Bay."

The helicopter wasn't able to land on the ice so the crew lowered a hoist to the floe to rescue Idlout, which meant he had to leave most of his equipment behind.

"He did lose a lot of equipment including his snow machine, qamutiik and other supplies he had with him," Munro said.

Despite having spent three long nights on a piece of drifting ice, Idlout declined a trip to the local health centre.

"I think he just wanted to get home," Munro said.

Idlout's experience illustrates better search and rescue capabilities are a must within the territory, Resolute resident Joadamee Amagoalik said.

"It showed a lot of need for a rescue up here in Nunavut," Amagoalik said. "It took almost four days for them to come and actually rescue him and they had to come all the way from Greenwood (Nova Scotia)."

Nunavut requires more equipment, such as its own helicopter, dedicated to search and rescue efforts, Amagoalik said.

"It is needed because the ice around our area is not always stable now and if there is a need for a major rescue up here, we would be in trouble," he said.

Ron Elliot, MLA for Resolute, Arctic Bay and Grise Fiord, agreed Nunavut needs more emergency response capability.

"This emphasizes what we've been talking about with the Northwest Passage opening up," he said. "If there was an emergency, how quickly would they be able to respond?"

Elliot said he believes Operation Nanook 2010, which is due to take place in the High Arctic in August, will show the federal government just how difficult responding to a large-scale emergency in the High Arctic would be.

Amagoalik said Idlout's ordeal is also an example of how global warming is affecting the Arctic. There has been open water on the Northwest Passage near Resolute for the past three winters and the annual New Year's Day seal hunt had to be cancelled this year due to ice conditions.

"Every Jan. 1 we have a seal hunting contest. We had to cancel that just because it was too dangerous for hunters to be out near the floe edge," Amagoalik said.

In the past, the sea ice extended all the way from Resolute to nearby Devon Island, he said.

"People keep talking about global warming, but we're dealing with it right now," Amagoalik said. "When I was growing up, the ice would freeze all the way to Devon Island. I don't remember ever having open water in January."