A Nanaimo, B.C., couple, who amassed a worldwide following through their YouTube channel documenting their off-road adventures, have died in an accident in the B.C. Interior.
Stacey Tourout and Matthew Yeomans ran Toyota World Runners, a channel with 200,000Â subscribers, showcasing off-road trips through B.C. and the world.
The couple also ran a blog documenting their extensive car and RV retrofits, as well as their extensive travels throughout North and South America.
News of their death, which occurred Aug. 7, was announced on social media by friends and family, and the incident was confirmed by Kaslo Search and Rescue (SAR), who attended near Trout Lake in the West Kootenay region.
WATCH | Yeomans and Tourout’s 2023 video talking about their journeys:Â
Colleen Tourout, Stacey’s mother, posted on social media that the couple had succumbed to their injuries after an offroad accident in the mountains of B.C. “that they loved so much.”
“They are together forever as we knew they would always be,” the post read.
Another off-road YouTuber, The Story Till Now, was among the many online who expressed grief over the couple’s death.
“They were so young and full of life, so talented, and this is a huge loss for our off-road community, their friends and family, and the world,” reads a post from the channel on social media.
Stacey Tourout and Matthew Yeomans have posted videos and documented their adventures throughout the world. (Colleen Tourout/Facebook)
SAR advises caution
Mark Jennings-Bates, a manager with Kaslo SAR, said rescuers were called to an off-road motor vehicle incident around 7:30 p.m. local time on Aug. 7.
“So it was on a forestry road, somewhere in the mountains, and quite a long ways north in the valley up towards Trout Lake, the village of Trout Lake.”
Jennings-Bates said that rescuers had a very accurate location for where the accident occurred.
“Our teams were able to get to them efficiently. It’s a long journey, but they got there efficiently,” he said. “So that was very, very helpful.
“And of course that means that the helicopter pilot could also fly straight to the destination with confidence that he was going to find them.”
When rescuers got to the scene, Jennings-Bates said that one of the people in the vehicle had no vital signs, and the other one was taken to hospital, where they later died.
Jennings-Bates said he didn’t know if the couple was filming at the time of the accident, nor did he know the exact cause of the accident, but said it is suspected to have been caused by a loss of control on rough terrain.
The rescuer urged anyone going into mountainous regions to be prepared in the event of an accident, particularly as rescuers may need extra time to get there.
“You’re not on a highway, you don’t need to wear a seat belt, but it’s always good to use the safety devices that are built into the equipment to help protect you as well,” he added.