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msar-riders - Re: [MSAR] Home Land Security

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Subject: Mounted search and rescue

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: "Jorene Downs" <Jorene@CEOates.com>
  • To: "Mounted search and rescue" <msar-riders@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [MSAR] Home Land Security
  • Date: Thu, 25 Mar 2004 13:13:54 -0800

 
----- Original Message -----
From: tm'-fi
Sometimes too many search teams forget the importance of rescue operations.  The term L.A.S.T. (locate, access, stabilize and transport) is also used during suburban disasters.  
Very true. I think many in SAR / MSAR focus their training emphasis on the Search, with far less emphasis on the Rescue. Many don't even have training for Search in a suburban / urban environment potentially involving structures, yet children and seniors in that kind of environment are often the focus of a SAR. Blending the "how to search a structure" training in the CERT program with typical SAR training would eliminate what I perceive to be a gaping hole in SAR training.
 
Many SAR/MSAR teams rely on the radio to bring in assistance if a Rescue is needed. What would they do if that assistance isn't available? A life might hang in the balance of a SAR/MSAR team's abilities to perform at least fundamental Rescue, complete with more than basic First Aid training. Blending the CERT crash course in higher medical training (including the basics of Triage) and basic rescue of a trapped person adds skill sets I think are very applicable in SAR, much less in a disaster.
 
Another factor is the way technology is impacting SAR. With cell phones. GPS, FRS/GMRS radio, etc., and the PLB (Personal Locator Beacon) now available, going forward there will be less Search and more Rescue / Go Fetch in regions where you'd commonly find MSAR units. Any SAR/MSAR team that isn't expanding their training to be better prepared for the Rescue / Go Fetch is reducing their potential for being a viable SAR resource going forward. However, those SAR/MSAR teams in the process of expanding capabilities to meet the changing needs for SAR are also becoming better prepared for disaster response.
 
I wouldn't be at all surprised in the future to see local SAR management requiring that applicants have CERT training, and ask their current membership to also take CERT training. For those not familiar with CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) under the Citizen Corps program under FEMA / Homeland Security, visit http://www.citizencorps.gov/programs/cert.shtm 
 
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Jorene Downs
Tulare Co, CA
SAR, MSAR, Swiftwater Rescue, US&R,
Technical Rescue, Cave Rescue,
Hasty Team, ICP
www.CEOates.com/sar
Tulare-Kings CERT Program Coordinator
www.tk-cert.org



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