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msar-riders - Re: [MSAR] ICS and SAR group structure

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Subject: Mounted search and rescue

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  • From: "Jorene Downs" <Jorene@CEOates.com>
  • To: <msar-riders@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [MSAR] ICS and SAR group structure
  • Date: Wed Feb 5 00:30:01 2003

From: "Paul Fleming" <pfleming@nwlink.com>
> Take a horse trailer up a unfamiliar narrow mountain logging road in
> the snow at night to get to a search area, then tell me it isn't
> necessary to have a support vehicle safety check the road first and
> locate any turn around points or parking areas. These unnecessary
> people in our unit run the base camp, also maintain a radio relay
> communications link between base camp and search teams. Move trailers
> to pick up and re deploy teams. Sometimes they even bring hot coffee
> to the search teams. The support folks increase the search teams
> effectiveness by at least 50%.

Other examples of MSAR support personnel activities might be hauling in
water when there is a shortage in the vicinity, bring horse feed during a
prolonged SAR, and even maintaining the horse area of the base camp by
making sure the horse areas are kept clean, with water and feed ready for
when the searchers return. Sometimes there is extra livestock and that
person cares for the stock while the searchers are out. (On a remote
Wilderness SAR some riders bring a 2nd mount to use for packing, alternate
day riding, or as a "guest" mount to transport a someone without a horse
when it isn't economical or feasible to use a chopper.) I've hauled water
and food to horses and riders in the field so they didn't have to return to
base. We've also sent out people with radios to act as a relay when the
steep mountain terrain defies efforts to communicate with the ICP. These
support personnel can be invaluable from a management perspective because
they are very useful resources, and very willing to help in any way that is
needed. But I want the support personnel to have basic SAR training so they
better understand how their role fits into the big picture.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Jorene Downs
Tulare Co, CA
SAR, MSAR, Swiftwater Rescue, US&R






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