2014 Mountain Rescue Reaccreditation

On Saturday March 1, 2014, BAMRU successfully completed the California Region Mountain Rescue Association’s reaccreditation test in the discipline of search management and tracking of lost person incidences.  This is one of three required disciplines to be an accredited national Mountain Rescue Association team. The other two disciplines are search and rescue in winter conditions and cliff rescue environments. To pass this test, members of BAMRU had to demonstrate the ability to perform a grid search, track a subject through varied terrain, use an emergency locator transmitter (ELT), successfully treat our mock patient and demonstrate proficiency in running a command post.  

Twenty of BAMRU’s members and trainees attended the event, including two who acted as test evaluators for other teams. All told, Placer County Sheriff Office was host to over 200 Search and Rescue personnel from over 20 different teams from across California. The day unfolded along with receding storms along the American River in Auburn State Recreation Park.

The day started at zero dark thirty and our first task was to locate a downed aircraft by honing in on a signal from an ELT.  By driving to strategic locations in the vicinity where the aircraft was last seen, field teams were able to use the signal strength of the ELT receivers and take bearings in the direction of the signals. The collected information was then radioed back to the command post where the command staff collated all the field data and triangulated the plane’s location and directed the rescuers to the scene of the simulated crash site.

Next, the team carefully followed the tracks of the subject who was possibly injured and had wandered from the simulated crash site wreckage.  Tracking involves using a keen eye to follow sometimes very subtle signs that a subject may have left behind in order to determine a direction of travel and find the missing person. Once found, the condition of the patient was assessed and medical treatment provided.

Our medical scenario involved a subject with a head injury whose condition was deteriorating and required urgent evacuation.  BAMRU was responsible for managing the patient, communicating the situation back to the command post, requesting additional resources and evacuating the patient quickly but safely.  Upon securing the patient into a litter basket, the carry out to from the wilderness to a waiting ambulance at trailhead went quickly and smoothly.

BAMRU ended the day with a grid search looking for evidence from a crime scene scenario.  No stranger to this practice, the team combed through brush, grass, trees, shrubs and poison oak for an hour long test in search of the missing items. 

BAMRU would like to thank Placer County Sheriff’s Office for hosting this event and for providing all of the volunteer patients. Thanks as well to the evaluators of the event and the Auburn State Parks and Recreation department for their support.  Last but not least, we'd like to thank Marin County SAR for hosting a multi team training prior to the reaccreditation.  

If you are interested in supporting BAMRU or finding out more about what we do, please visit www.bamru.org