A Salute to Search and Rescue

By Rob Dunbar

Atlantic Canadian water enthusiasts, whether you’re a sailor, power boater, paddler or sport fisherman, love to leave their troubles on shore and get away from the frenzy of their everyday lives. We all know it’s the law to have a Transport Canada-approved flotation device for every person aboard. Sometimes despite our best intentions and precautions, plans go awry when the unexpected happens and we fall overboard.

Splash! You’ve fallen out of the boat into the cold, mind-numbing water. Panic sets in as you’ve become disorientated as the icy grip of the water shocks the body, involuntarily forcing precious air out of your lungs as a cry of anguish escapes trembling lips. Paralyzed by fear and cold it is imperative that you stay mentally alert, try not to panic and prioritize what needs to be done first. In a marine emergency both flotation and body warmth is pivotal to survival. Proper clothing designed for quick drying — meaning no fleece or jeans — and a Transport Canada-approved flotation device is definitely worth the price, especially when the threat of hypothermia is present. The first signs of mild hypothermia typically are slurred speech, difficulty executing motors skills such as grabbing a rope, and fatigue. To increase survival time it is imperative to get out of the water as soon as possible. Don’t go back in to retrieve a lost item, no matter how important you think it is. Once out of the water all you can do is strip off the wet clothing to slow down the rate of heat loss, try your best to get out of the elements and wait to be rescued. As Les Stroud, television’s Survivorman, often says “If you’re wet, you die”.

These situations are, unfortunately, more common that you might think. According to a 10-ten year study from the Red Cross, 5,900 individuals died and 3,526 survived a hospital admission for near drowning, some suffering permanent brain impairment. The organization also says an average of 200 people per year die as a result of cold water immersion and more than half of these deaths occur during recreational activities. Fishing, including recreational, commercial and subsistence, was the most frequent activity for cold-water boating incidents. And finally, only one out of every five people involved in boating immersion deaths were reported to be properly wearing a flotation device.

But there are plenty of ways to keep safe on the water. Just like filing a float plan with the Coast Guard, it is imperative that you leave a trip plan with a reliable individual who, unless they hear from you, will report you’re overdue to local police authorities, who in turn will notify the local branch of the local Search and Rescue team. Another good tip is to leave a copy of your itinerary in your car. That way when a Search and Rescue team finds your car, and the police open your vehicle, they’ll have a better chance of finding you quickly. It’s these search and rescue teams who often get boaters out of distress.

In the Halifax Regional Municipality the Halifax Regional Search and Rescue (HRSAR) is responsible for helping those boaters who find themselves in trouble. HRSAR is a non-profit, volunteer organization whose goal is to find and rescue lost people, including boaters, in the Halifax Regional Municipality. The group also helps the community in endeavours, such as evidence searches for local police forces, wilderness and survival and education workshops for kids and adults, evacuations and other civil emergencies. HRSAR works with the Emergency Measures Organization (EMO) and the Halifax Regional Municipality.

The members of this heroic group are very dedicated individuals, many of whom with varying personal and professional backgrounds outside the realm of search and rescue. The only trait all members share is the desire to help their fellow man. Team members are more than well intentioned individuals as a strong commitment and police security clearance is needed to be a member of this team. HRSAR responds in all types of weather on a 24-hour, 365-day basis. Training is both crucial and mandatory for all HRSAR team members. “Search and Rescue sets into the heart of one’s very being. At some time or other most of us will experience a host of emotions,” explains longtime member Deb Stover, whose nursing background has proven to be a valuable asset to the organization.

In a typical scenario every search begins when someone is presumed lost and is reported to local authorities who in turn ask the local Search and Rescue branch for help. Halifax Search and Rescue then start to mobilize their resources starting with City Watch, a computer-generated call-out system, with a message fanned out to all team members in the system.

Once the call out is completed, pre-determined drivers mobilize the Command and Logistics Centre along with a Suburban used as the on-site vehicle. Once on-site, generators, radio tower, and portable lights are set up, the Command Centre is organized and lessoned with the police officer in charge.

Small, experienced, quick moving reconnaissance teams may be dispatched, to gather as much info as possible to share with the Command Center, who is coordinating the search. Armed with appropriate maps and other necessary lost subject data, teams are put together with trained Team Leaders to assume search tasks, most teams consist of three or four trained searchers.

“Generally, we do not include “spontaneous volunteers” or family members of the lost person.” Stover says.

Team safety is a priority. “We are of no help to a lost person if we are not well prepared for whatever weather and or terrain that we have to deal with. It is incumbent upon each searcher to have suitable equipment and personal supplies to remain hydrated for at least 24 hours, thus the need to carry food and water, keep as warm and dry as possible, carry at least one compass, flashlight(s) with extra batteries and many also carry GPS.” Each team must have at least one first-aid kit and qualified member who can provide first aid. When on a shoreline search each team also carries a throw-bag as safety gear.

“SAR is important, fun; stressful, exciting, demanding, educational and so on it not only serves our community but provides meaningful life experiences while forming incredible friendships,” Stover says.

The largest search mission carried out by all SAR teams from Nova Scotia and some from New Brunswick was the extensive work done after the crash of Swiss Air Flight 111, which is the largest mutual air search operation in Nova Scotia’s history. During that Sept. 9, 1998 disaster, Halifax Regional Search and Rescue was in charge of all ground operations, including those of the military and other search-and-rescue teams. Over the 64-day search the volunteers had contributed 48,780 hours and 3,141 person days.

HRSAR receives small grants from the province of Nova Scotia and the Halifax Regional Municipality to fund its operations. But the group also relies on fundraising efforts. In fact, 95 per cent of its funding comes from fundraising events, such as manning the coat check at the Halifax International Boat Show.

To find out more about Halifax Search and Rescue, you can check out their website http://halifaxsar.ca. Also be sure to visit them as they man the door at the Halifax International Boat Show from Feb. 23-26, 2012.