Search and Rescue Training Meeting - April 12, 2012

Post date: Apr 12, 2012 11:44:18 PM

17 C.E.R.T. members and 3 WOFAS members attended the Search and Rescue training presented by Oren Levin of New Jersey Search and Rescue. The training covered different types of searches, different certifications, training, and specialization that exist within the Search and Rescue field. New Jersey Search and Rescue is a member of the Search and Rescue Council which is composed of about 10 different search groups in coordination with the State Police. The group responds to requests mostly in Northern New Jersey and even into New York State.

Role of C.E.R.T. in a Wilderness Search

  • Help bridge the gap between the beginning of the incident and when more trained professionals can arrive
  • Local knowledge and can act as a force multiplier
  • Key focus is on rescuer safety
  • Identify and know local resources
  • Train with those local resources
  • Don't just do something! THINK!
  • Things to add to a typical C.E.R.T. bag for a search
    • Food and Water
    • Whistle
    • First Aid Kit
    • Personal Items
    • Know how to use the the items in real work exercises
  • Start Organized and Stay Organized
    • Track responders
    • Document your actions
    • Be prepared to brief incoming resources
  • Have a communications plan
  • Protect the area
    • Protect scent items, tracks, and potential clues
    • Stay away from cars, tents, etc.
  • Brief all members before the task
    • What are they doing
    • Who are they looking for
    • How, who, and when do they check in with
    • Weather
    • Hazards
      • Abandoned mines, barbed wire, etc.
  • Debrief after the task
    • What was their task?
    • Was it completed?
    • What did they find?
    • Hazards
    • Recommendations
  • Initiating a search
    • Indirect Search Tactics
      • Don't physically enter an area
      • Gather information
      • Intelligence gathering and fact finding
        • ICS Lost person questionnaire
        • What were they wearing?
        • Have they gotten lost before?
        • Are they familiar with the area?
        • Are they familiar with the outdoors?
        • Who saw them last?
        • Do they have family in the area or where did they formerly live?
      • Attraction techniques
        • Using sound or light to attract attention and give someone a direction to head
        • Not continuous, run the siren, turn it off and listen
      • Containment techniques
        • Establish a theoretical search area surrounding the Last Known Point based on the time and ability to traverse the area
        • 2 hours at 2 MPH, is 4 miles in each direction, which is a 50 square mile area
  • Additional C.E.R.T. roles
    • Managing and Operating Staging Areas
    • Managing and Operating Rehab Areas
    • Transportation
    • Screening Spontaneous Unaffiliated Community Volunteers
    • Traffic
  • Ideal flow of a SAR Response
    • Call out
    • Response
      • Is the scene safe
      • Identify additional resources
      • Identify an appropriate staging area
      • Notify responders
    • Initial Actions
      • Interview the reporting party
      • Create a missing persons flyer
      • Interview other who have been in contact
      • Establish containment of the theoretical search area and employee attraction techniques if possible
    • Supporting the Mission
      • Brief incoming responders
      • Assist in continuing the investigation as dictated by the Agency having Jurisdiction
      • Begin Canvasing
      • Assist incoming teams
    • Resolution
      • Assist in debriefing returning teams
      • Notify all responders
      • Critique the Mission
  • Past C.E.R.T. involvement in Searches
    • Hardyston - C.E.R.T. helped with canvas
    • Stokes State Forest - C.E.R.T. provided containment
  • Table Top and Field Exercises
    • Resource selection and notification
    • Interview and investigation
    • Establishing effective containment
    • Canvassing
    • Door to door search
    • Mission documentation