Tuesday, 22 May 2018 - 9:51am

New SAR staff ready to go bush

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News article photos (1 items)

SAR chopper

After an intensive two-week course, more than 30 officers are now ready to support and lead Search and Rescue (SAR) activities in their districts.

The national SAR course was held at the RNZAF Base at Dip Flat in Marlborough, bringing together officers from across the country including sole charge station officers, plus LandSAR volunteers.

“Police has a statutory obligation to provide SAR services and the number of SAR jobs is steadily increasing year on year,” says Sergeant Phil Simmonds, course manager and Emergency Management co-ordinator for Canterbury.

SAR jobs arise for a variety of reasons, including people being unprepared or overestimating their abilities.

“Given the ageing population in New Zealand, we are also seeing an increasing number of search and rescue jobs in urban areas for older people or dementia sufferers who have gone wandering," says Phil.

Most course participants have recently joined a SAR team in their home district and were looking to expand and enhance the skills they already had.

The course is held annually and is designed to prepare officers to undertake the Police role within a SAR team.

Over the two weeks of the course, participants took part in sessions which covered the organisational structure of SAR in New Zealand, the Coordinated Incident Management Systems (CIMS), SAR theory and practice.

Participants were introduced to modern search management skills and techniques and developed essential SAR skills. A key part of the course was a practical exercise, with participants going bush for two nights to find a lost party.

“The course is a great test for participants and a comprehensive learning opportunity to upskill staff and prepare them for search and rescue activities in their district,” says Phil.

“It is important that staff get these training opportunities so we can ensure there is consistency and expertise in search and rescue activities across the country.

“By having staff well trained in search and rescue practices we can go a long way to delivering on Our Business and helping keep our community safe.”