[pct-l] Be Careful out there. Don't let this be you

[Gail Van Velzer]

I just returned from SAR City in Barstow.  I was teaching a large animal 
rescue class, but there were many classes held covering just about 
everything.  It's wonderful to see a great group of volunteers ready to help 
when the need arises.  We had 100's of volunteers there from many different 
counties all over California.  Maybe one of you was even there!
Gail
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Tom Grundy" <caver456 at gmail.com>
To: "Andrea Dinsmore" <andrea at dinsmoreshikerhaven.com>
Cc: "PCT" <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Sunday, October 12, 2014 9:43 AM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Be Careful out there. Don't let this be you


> Speaking as a SAR volunteer in (relatively mellow) Nevada County CA:
>
> 1) most SAR volunteers are eager to get out there and help, and look
> forward to the teamwork of making a good outcome, i.e., it's NOT a burden,
> regardless of the hour, all other questions aside (like safety, etc)
>
> 2) you don't have to wait any certain amount of time to call 911.
> Dispatch, law enforcement, and the SAR team will get back in touch with 
> you
> and everyone will work together to make the best informed decision as to
> how to react.  If you call when the hiker is an hour late, law enforcement
> may tell you they can't justify a search yet, stay in touch, etc, but 
> maybe
> there are special circumstances that justify calling a search right away.
>
> Who knows, every case is different, every sheriff is different, but don't
> get caught hesitating wondering if it's OK to call 911.  It is.  Your 911
> call does not call out the calvary - it alerts the folks who decide if the
> calvary needs to be called out.
>
> Where's the gray line that defines 'abuse' of 911?  Good question, it
> probably varies by location.  The most important tool in the chain of
> survival is the one between your ears - that goes for the subject and for
> the one making the phone call - often the same person.
>
> More judgment is usually required for using a PLB / spot / etc - on a lot
> of models, "you can't un-ring that bell", and folks get into a panic
> situation, hit the button, then get themselves out of it 5 minutes later -
> but the calvary has been called.  Different topic.  Phone is best.
>
> Blah Blah Blah, this is a really robust group of hikers and most everyone
> here will most likely never be a subject or the one to call 911, but, it's
> better to know than not to know.
>
>
> On Sun, Oct 12, 2014 at 9:15 AM, Andrea Dinsmore <
> andrea at dinsmoreshikerhaven.com> wrote:
>
>> If the HRT team had to look for her for 90 minutes they didn't have
>> coordinates from a PLB to find her. Here is the complete story from SAR 
>> and
>> HRT teams.
>>
>> On Thursday afternoon we flew down to King County to assist with the 
>> search
>> of a hiker who had been missing for three days. We received our 
>> assignment
>> at Bandera Airfield and spent the next 90 minutes flying low over the
>> forest canopy and various alpine lakes in hopes of spotting the missing
>> hiker and her dogs. The plan was to keep searching until we ran low on 
>> fuel
>> and then return to our headquarters. After hitting our fuel mark, we flew
>> our last assignment north down the Pratt River on the way back to
>> Snohomish. It was on this final portion of the search that one of our 
>> crew
>> members spotted the missing hiker waving from a log alongside the river
>> bank. We quickly inserted two crew members and departed to refuel. Once
>> back on scene, we hoist extracted the hiker and both of her dogs. Members
>> of King County Explorer Search and Rescue arrived on scene to help us 
>> with
>> the extraction and worked on putting out the signal fires set by the 
>> hiker.
>> Over 16 ground teams were in the field on that day alone. We are proud of
>> our working relationship with neighboring counties-- it allows for our
>> organizations to integrate seamlessly when additional resources are 
>> needed.
>>
>> It doesn't matter if you are lost or hurt. If you are out of food and not
>> dressed for the weather a day hike that turns into a longer trip than
>> planned it can turn deadly. She had the brains to start a signal fire to
>> help with her rescue. If my child was 3 days late from a day hike I would
>> definitely be calling SAR.
>>
>> Andrea Dinsmore
>>
>> On Sat, Oct 11, 2014 at 4:20 PM, Brick Robbins <brick at brickrobbins.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> > http://vimeo.com/108635731
>> >
>> > Of course, call if you really need rescue, but a little bit of care
>> > goes a long way....
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