Information for Applicants to the Terrace Search and Rescue Team

 

General Information

Recruitment is conducted in the fall. The team’s normally consists of 70 professional volunteer members. Recruitment of new personnel will generally reflect the need to maintain an adequate strength to fulfill the teams responsibilities.

 

Training

When applicants are confidant they want to join the team they will go through an interview process. Those that are selected are then introduced to the Ground Search and Rescue Course (GSAR), this course is intended to provide participants with the skills necessary to safely and efficiently function in a Search and Rescue (SAR) operation. This training is run on Thursday nights from 7pm-10pm. Formal training is provided and it is essential that members attend on a regular basis. Regular team training is performed on Monday evenings from 7pm to 10pm and occasionally on weekends. We also attend many community events throughout the year. This forms the basis of time commitment. Although the team provides most of the specialized technical equipment to perform SAR work, members are expected to equip themselves with appropriate clothing, footwear and personal items

 

Requirements

-To be able to pass a Criminal Record Check for working with Vulnerable Sectors and to provide a Drivers Abstract.

-Members are expected to annually complete at minimum - 50 hours, attend one community event and respond to one call.

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2024/25 New Member Intake

INFO NIGHT - September 25

INTERVIEWS - October 16 & 17

 

GSAR COURSE - You must be able to attend all sessions.

E -Evening Sessions  7-10pm

D -Day Session 9am-5pm

Overnighter 10am Saturday to 10am Sunday

 

GSAR E1 Thursday Nov 7 Intro to SAR, Ropes, 

GSAR E2 Thursday Nov 14 Rope Practice

GSAR E3 Thursday Nov 21 Rope Review and Evaluation 

GSAR D1 Sunday Nov 24 Comms, Evacuation, Tracking

GSAR E4 Thurs Nov 28 Navigation Classroom 1, Quiz 1 (1701: Orientation and Safety) 

GSAR E5 Thurs Dec 5 Navigation Classroom 2, Health and Safety

GSAR D2 Sun Dec 8 Navigation Field Session

Tues Dec 10 Optional Nav Review

GSAR E6 Thurs Dec 12 Quiz 2 (1705: Navigation), Search Progression GSAR E7 Thurs Jan 16 Quiz 3 (1702: Search Progression), Survival. 

GSAR E8 Thurs Jan 23 Search Types, Quiz 4 (1706: Survival)

GSAR D3 Sat-Sun Jan 25-26 Overnighter (1706) 

GSAR E9 Thursday Feb 6 Field Search Types Practice, Quiz (1704: GSAR skills)

GSAR D4 Sunday Feb 9 Mock Search 

GSAR E10 Thursday Feb 13 CISM 101 

GSAR E11 Thursday Feb 20 GSAR Celebration, Meet Your Mentor and Wrap Up

 

Terrace Search and Rescue’s Responsibilities

 

The role of the Terrace Search and Rescue Team includes the following:

• Assisting policing agencies and the BC Ambulance Service in the search and rescue of missing and injured persons;

• Assisting policing agencies and the Provincial Coroner’s Service in body recovery operations;

• Assisting municipal agencies in search, rescue, communications, and other roles during civil emergencies;

• Promoting education of the public in mountain safety, first aid, and search and rescue techniques. 

 

Call-outs are unpredictable, but tend to occur mainly on weekends and evenings. In recent years we have averaged around 30 callouts per year.

 

Members should expect to experience incidents including small-scale searches in both urban and wilderness environments; embankment and/or high-angle rope-rescues; swift-water rescues; body recoveries; and searches on lakes and rivers. In addition, the team delivers community education programs to educate people on techniques for dealing with wilderness incidents. Assistance to other community groups may also be provided by SAR members to facilitate fund-raising for the team.

 

Although they are volunteers, the life saving service provided by the members of the Terrace Search and Rescue Team requires that they maintain the standards of unpaid professionals in assisting municipal and provincial agencies.

 

Terrace Search and Rescue,
4455 Greig Avenue,
Terrace, BC,

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Ground Search and Rescue (GSAR) training for new members usually begins at the end of October through to the end of February, Typically training for GSAR is run on Thursday nights and occasional weekends during the day. If you have further questions about volunteering please fill out the form below.