I don't know your local environment, nor the specific event you refer to.
I grew up hiking and camping in the peaks and lake district of the UK, which are simultaneously breathtakingly beautiful, and incredibly susceptible to changes of weather. I've been there when I was camping in a makeshift shelter from branches, leaves at -7deg C (by deliberate choice 100m from a building) and as part of a group where we got hit by a massive storm leaving 11 of the 14 tents written off and the others damaged. At no time in all my years did I ever feel at risk, as there was always a plan B and C and we were within our capabilities, initially with experienced leaders and latterly as the experienced one to others.
This reminds me of a situation from 2008. There is a major 'event' in the UK, known as the Original Mountain Marathon. 2 day hike/orienteering event in teams. On this particular year the weather got really really gnarly and then it made the news during the event, and all manner of stories came out.
Eg this one:
Organisers criticised as atrocious weather brings chaotic end to marathon fell race - headline, event shouldn't have gone ahead, 2,500 people on course, hundreds had to find temporary shelter, lack of people to crew the local mountain rescue teams.
And then there was this alternate follow up:
Response: Our mountain marathon was far from chaotic. Highlights the lack of rescue teams was mainly as many of the competitors were the mountain rescue teams, and so already out on course, with all their skills, and doing exactly what all the teams were trained and equipped to do - head to high ground, find shelter, stay put until conditions improve and daylight.
Indeed I also was hearing from people who were competitors. Who had gone out there to test themselves in these conditions. You don't go up there in late october to get a suntan.
But now I'm living in NZ I'm really conservative about the trips I do, and the kit I take. I've not got the local skills to have confidence to go out there and be able to survive. I tend(ed) to limit myself to organised events, known course, many other people and regualar checkpoints. My sue of 'tended' in past tense was in my last off-road trail run, indeed the one on teh easiest terrain I'd done I tore my ankle ligaments whilst I was distracted checkign on another runner sat by the trail holding her leg. She'd fallen on same rock, then got up and ran off as I went down. I ended up hopping back 1km to the last hut, and then took 4 hours to hop out 7km to the start of the 4x4 track where the medics picked me up. I declined a helicopter as whilst in pain, it was daylight, I was not in life risk, and I had an awesome Dept Conservation Ranger giving me a personal rundown of all the plants and wildlife we saw on that trail. Was epic. (surgery after less so, and now banned from trail running).
My main point being, that there's some really good reasons we WANT people to be out learning the skills in the right way, and sometimes that means that there will need to be rescues. And that's where those really skilled people can practice their rescue skills too. You can get caught out by being ill prepared, unskilled, or you can be well prepared, and well skilled, but still need some help. Most people doing mountain rescue do it as they love the countryside. They would be the first to passionately object to anything that suggested curtailing public access to the hills, as they themselves started somewhere.
