On September 25, BAMRU of San Mateo County Sheriff's Office received word of an ongoing search for 72 year old missing hunter in the Mendocino national forest area in rugged terrain above 5,500’. Gene Penaflor had disappeared during a hunting trip the day before. He and his partner agreed to meet for lunch and the had split up to walk down two different ridges. Unfortunately, Gene never met his partner, and was reported missing later that day. Seven members of BAMRU/SMCSO responded to the call out, and met with Mendocino county search and rescue at 8:30am on Thursday the 26th. The search continued until Saturday, with 13 BAMRU/SMCSO members attending on Friday, and a total of 14 on Saturday.
The Searchers Prepare
Accessing the site was quite challenging: it required a multi-hour drive on dirt roads from Ukiah following the drive up from the bay area. Thankfully our hosts were incredibly helpful, which made the process substantially easier.
Making Maps
Once on scene BAMRU/SMCSO was honored to be able to help coordinate a significant part of the effort to locate Mr. Penaflor, including analyzing the map of the area and using information from Mr. Penaflor's hunting partner to plan the search assignments for the weekend. The terrain was very rugged but the search teams all worked together seamlessly to cover a very large area over the course of the four day search, we were very grateful for the incredible professionalism and hard work of all of the teams involved. With great sadness we were all forced to leave on Saturday night by an incoming bad weather front and a total absence of clues. We always hate leaving searches without any result, and so an early end to the search was very hard on all of the teams involved.
Thankfully, two weeks later on Saturday October 12th, a full 18 days after Gene Penaflor went missing, BAMRU/SMCSO was invited back to Mendocino to assist with a follow up search. Eight BAMRU/SMCSO members were able to attend, although none of us expected the result that followed. At 08:30am Gene Penaflor, still alive and sheltering near a creek not far from where he fell, was able to get the attention of a group of hunters passing near by. When the hunters found him, he reported that he had not been able to eat for three days and was incredibly weak. They were able to use their sweaters to make a stretcher and carry him to a nearby clearing. They also called 911, and we were able to use their GPS coordinates to locate them, and find Gene.
The members of BAMRU/SMCSO were privileged to be able to assist with the care and extrication of Mr. Penaflor. We are very grateful to the hunters who found him for their assistance in the hauling of the stretcher to the helicopter landing zone, where Mr. Penaflor could be air-lifted to Ukiah Valley Medical Center. We are also incredibly grateful to all of the other search teams involved, their professionalism and expertise was instrumental to the success of this recovery. Mr. Penaflor was treated for minor injuries and released to his family the next day.
Ready For the Rescue
It is truly amazing that Gene Penaflor was able to survive for so long alone in the wilderness. He reported that he was able to shoot squirrels and other small game, and that he cooked algae from the nearby stream to stay alive. To stay warm he insulated himself with packed leaves and grasses and made a small fire. When it rained or snowed he crawled under a large log to keep dry.
On Our Way!
Carrying Gene Penaflor to the Helicopter Landing Zone
Off to the Hospital
An important element of this story is that during the initial four day search Mr. Penaflor used his camp fire to burn wet leaves and produce smoke in an effort to signal the CHP helicopter that was flying overhead assisting with the search. He did this during two full days of the search, but the helicopter was unable to see him. Members of the public are often unaware of how incredibly difficult it is to see small objects - such as people or campfires - from a helicopter flying over an expansive and thickly forested landscape. In this case, the wind was strong enough to blow away most of the smoke, and the crew of the helicopter could see nothing.
We are incredibly pleased with the outcome of this search, and very happy that Mr. Penaflor is out of the hospital and doing well now. The members of BAMRU/SMCSO were truly privileged to be able to assist with the care and extrication of Mr. Penaflor, and we hope that other searches can all have such a happy outcome, although preferably with much less time in between the disappearance and the recovery.
Earlier this summer some of our team members made the annual trek to the Sierra foothills to volunteer for one of the toughest races around. Thanks to Lucas Marciniak and Ben Yaffe for sharing the experience via this write up:
On Saturday June 29th, BAMRU staffed the medical checkpoint at mile 85 of the Western States Endurance Race. This 100-mile ultra-marathon takes runners from Squaw Valley to Auburn, California on a grueling trail of steep switchbacks, swift-water river crossings, and mountain passes; this year with a record temp of 102° F.
For the 5th year running, BAMRU supported the event with technical member and emergency RN Lucas Marciniak as the medical captain for the aid station, as well as a team who brought a variety of experience levels. Regardless of medical background, teamwork is crucial. The hours are long, and as the night goes on the medical tent can gets increasingly intense. As each runner reaches mile 85 of the race, the team assess them, paying close attention to their mental status and weight compared to their starting weight (as an indication of fluid status). Along with a host of other ailments, the team provided extensive blister care and addressed dehydration, hyponatremia, hypoglycemia, muscle/skeletal injuries, and exhaustion. With the race having their own ALS protocols, we were able to provide a broad range of interventions.
This is a perfect event for BAMRU, as our medical, rescue, and communications are put to good use.Everyone on the team has experience in emergency settings and knows how to keep their cool under pressure and with limited sleep. BAMRU staffs the aid station with experienced/professional medical providers but also leverages the event to give the EMTs and WFRs on the team who don’t work in the medical field an opportunity to get an incredible amount of hands-on experience. Looking forward to 2014!
Somehow, this spring sprang forward faster than any other.
Since March, BAMRU has participated in four search operations. Most recently, we participated in the search for Mikaela Lynch in Clearlake which sadly, had a tragic outcome
: http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_23238753/search-missing-autistic-girl-clearlake-resumes-tuesday-morning
In addition to the searches, BAMRU also completed the Mountain Rescue Association's snow and ice re-accreditation, ran two extensive trainings geared towards our newest team members and a Navigation and Tracking training.
Alex, Mike and Chris shoot bearings at the Nav training
BAMRU is pleased to welcome the following 12 new trainees to the team. All attended at least two meetings, completed a mock search and a full weekend of SAR Basic before applying and being accepted:
Ethan guides Emily through waist deep snow at the MRA re-cert
Christiaan Adams Lindsay Chromik Kimberly Craig Michael Dacre Thom Dedecko Brian Ducay Dominique Freckmann Alexa Fredson-Hermann Kelly Going Ben Pitzer John Zirinsky
Congratulations and welcome to the team!
Now that the summer months are upon us, BAMRU is looking forward to at least 10 organized alpine trainings which will provide the team with experience traveling in mountainous terrain. Some of the peaks on the list include Shasta, Langley, Lassen, Laurel and Bear Creek Spire. It should be an excellent season of climbing!
Come back and visit us to see some of the photos from what are sure to be
wonderful training trips this summer.
This winter BAMRU, and many other California SAR teams, have been preparing for the upcoming California Region MRA snow and ice re-accreditation.
"The Mountain Rescue Association (MRA) is a national volunteer organization dedicated to saving lives through rescue and mountain safety education. The California Region of the Mountain Rescue Association consists of over 20 rescue teams from throughout the state of California. Majority of the members are unpaid volunteers who are highly trained. Accredited teams must meet the high standards of the MRA and must be re-evaluated every five years in each of the three search and rescue skills: Search and Tracking, Technical Rock, and Snow and Ice. California MRA teams not only respond to search and rescue operations in the unit's area of responsibility, but will also respond to mutual aid calls anywhere in the state to assist other agencies." -California Region MRA Website (http://www.crmra.org)
We are very much looking forward to spending time with teams from around the state in the beautiful setting of June Lake. Here are a few of the photos from our recent, rigorous trainings.
Abi Assessing a patient while Adam holds C-spine. Credit: John Mandish
Litter handling practice Credit: Chris Kantarjiev
Kyle as litter attendant. Credit: Chris Kantarjiev
Ethan maneuvering over a tricky transition. Credit: Blake Gleason
Every year the Ouray Ice Fest takes place in the scenic, mining, mountain town of Ouray, CO. Nestled in the San Juans, just getting there in winter can be an adventure, but once you arrive you are guaranteed a good time. Outdoor enthusiasts from all over come to watch and participate in some great ice climbing at the Ouray ice park and then recover from bad cases of the screaming barfies at the Ouray Brewery. This year, once again, a group of eager BAMRUvians attended the ice fest to work on their ice climbing skills and rub shoulders with Conrad Anker.
If you're thinking about going in 2014, or would like to try your hand at ice climbing (or other adventures) check out San Juan Mountain Guides, a guiding company run by a classmate of mine on a NOLS India Mountaineering course in 1999! In the Bay Area you can hook up with several guides in the Sierras. SMI, SMC, SMG or the AAI. The AAC also generally holds an ice climbing weekend in Coldstream Canyon every January. Enjoy and climb safe!
BAMRU is a wilderness search and rescue team specialized for operations in difficult terrain, challenging weather, or high altitude. We are based in the San Francisco Bay Area and operate throughout California.
We depend on public contributions to cover our expenses. Please donate.
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