Pincher Creek Search and Rescue holds training exercise

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Members of Pincher Creek Search and Rescue
in their new Command Post
C. Davis photo

Chris Davis, Pincher Creek Voice

On Tuesday evening, October 2 Pincher Creek Search and Rescue (PCSAR) members gathered at the Pincher Creek Fire hall to hold a training exercise.  To be certified each individual on the team has to attend at least two  practices or two real emergencies, or one of each in a year, according to PCSAR President Janet Jones.

 As the group was briefed, cold rain turned into cold snow outside after months of hot and dry conditions, a reminder that emergencies can happen in any weather.

First the group was divided into two groups, those that would man the command post and those that would pair off to conduct the search.  The command post is relatively new to PCSAR, having been acquired in the spring and then renovated.  The exercise was partly planned to allow members to become acquainted with the new rolling facility.  While still far from state of the art, it is a marked improvement over the school bus PCSAR was using.

The mock emergency turned out to be an urban search for a missing senior, "Brad Mussen", said to be suffering from Alzheimer's.  "Alzheimer's patients often go back to places where they have ancient history," said Jones.

Searchers were given a shoe print, a description of the missing man, information about his medical conditions, and background as to where he might be, which was prioritized based on places he had been found before and/or known to frequent.  Then they were paired up, issued a radio, and sent out to  try and find the missing (fictional) man.  They were told that some people they would encounter would be part of the exercise, and others might not be.  The areas they were assigned to search included several public areas and some private yards that had consented to be part of the exercise.


During a brief lull in the proceedings I asked Janet Jones what she thought the media's role should be when it came to emergency searches.  "What we'd like from the press is to help get the word out, especially when we need public assistance.  We expect the media to cooperate as much as possible, without being obtrusive," Jones said.  "There is sometimes private information that we don't want anyone to hear, whether it be family, media, whoever," she added, explaining that was one of the reasons media and the public were only allowed in the command post when invited.

"Generally when we're on a search, the RCMP is our media liaison.  We as search people do not talk to them (the media)."

In terms of social media and gossip she said "Everybody wants to know what's happening, everyone is curious.  It's better having your correct information out quickly, than to have a bunch of conjecture."

In a recent search, people on Facebook were announcing that missing people were found before Search and Rescue had even confirmed that they were the people they were looking for.

"Sometimes we can't release information.  We will do so in a timely manner," Jones said.

About the exercise itself she said "We're breaking in the new command post, and we're breaking in a new Operations Chief, Claus (Burchert).  Our Search Manager for this evening is Jeff Feist, he's an RCMP Seargent, and he's also Search Manager trained."  When it comes to the need for exercises like this one she said  "Use it or you lose it."

As a word of advice she said that if you have an emergency while driving, "Never leave your vehicle if you can help it.  A car is much easier to spot than a person is."

There are three basic types of search, which Jones explained:

• Type 1 - Requiring immediate response, for example a child gone missing and a creek nearby. "You would run the trail and make sure the kid is not in the water."
• Type 2 - Critical spacing.  A group search where searchers spread out far enough to cover a wider area.  "You should be able to see a backpack sized item." 
• Type 3 - Spontaneous volunteers walking shoulder to shoulder. This type of search often goes over areas previously covered in a Type 2 search, and is often used for finding evidence.