Basic Search and Rescue Training

I did my BSAR course on the weekend. It was kind of cold and wet, but good training. We focused a lot on navigation, (it would be bad if a search and rescue person got lost), search techniques and clue awareness.

The focus of a search is on finding clues. There is (usually) only one missing person, but multiple clues that will direct your search and increase your chances of finding the person quickly. So, when you go out on a search your focus is to look for clues, which then direct you to the location of the missing person.

Another thing we covered in the course was some basic survival skills, including starting fires. A really neat thing was cotton balls and vaseline. One spark on that and it will ignite instantly creating a little fire that will burn on it's own for a couple minutes - great for getting tinder going for a fire. Carry a few of these mixtures in film canisters and a Kershaw or Primus magnesium fire starter and you're all set to get a fire going when you need one.

I do my CPR in November, then my First Aid in January. Once I have those I'll be call-out qualified and trained to go on a search.

I will also be doing wilderness survival and first aid training sometime next year.