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msar-riders - Re: [MSAR] Why don't they call?

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  • From: "IRVIN LICHTENSTEIN" <ilichten1@verizon.net>
  • To: "'Mounted search and rescue'" <msar-riders@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [MSAR] Why don't they call?
  • Date: Mon, 25 May 2009 07:34:41 -0400

I am not exactly sure. Monitoring the county dispatches seems to say no
calls. Statewide call out is not handled by PEMA (PA EMA), they are the
transmitter of requests. From discussions with the current head of GPSAR
they get calls for their van to go across the state but not personnel
through PSARC. The other unit with a mounted section west of us is not a
PSARC member and its center of gravity has shifted more towards Reading, PA
and the Corps of Engineers project near there.

I think what is happening is that first, there are indeed fewer missions as
day trippers and long term hikers are getting more skilled (and fewer),
staying closer to home, and while park acreage is up, the rougher areas
owned by the PA Game Commission are closed to non-hunters essentially all
the time now. And there may be no one to call or the local authority may
not want to call out personnel (even free personnel do cost) for an overdue
jogger. The city has over 9200 acres of wilderness, and all the missing
persons in that area who are found in that area have been crime victims.
The last police search in the Park that made the papers was for a teenager
who didn't return to a stable overnight and then bluffed her way past
roadblocks to return during the day. No outside personnel were used even
though the stable manager offered assistance (it was a city owned historic
site by the way).

What I see happening is an increase in preventative patrolling. The state
parks have put their LE Rangers in cars and vigorously patrol the developed
areas and campgrounds (and many chain the gates at dusk), the county has
maintenance personnel driving the trail system from dawn to dusk, there are
mounted Townwatches, and we have been approached to help design a volunteer
patrol program for the City's Fairmount Park, which has no off the road
police presence of any kind.

Prevention is always cheaper but it does reduce the excitement a little.

Irv Lichtenstein

-----Original Message-----
From: msar-riders-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org
[mailto:msar-riders-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Una Smith
Sent: Monday, May 25, 2009 2:19 AM
To: Mounted search and rescue
Subject: [MSAR] Why don't they call?

So, Irv, why aren't your team and the dog team (GPSAR?) getting called?
Are there no missions? Are there missions but no need for volunteers?
Or is it a problem that the organizational infrastructure does not exist
to connect supply and demand?

I am sure you are not alone in this, because this is a question/gripe
that has come up before on MSAR-Riders.

Una
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