Search and rescue
When someone is missing, timing is everything which makes proper training an essential part of being a volunteer with York Sunbury Search and Rescue

IT’S IMPORTANT TO HAVE THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT: Theresa McGuire holds the GPS unit she was learning to use as part of the GPS training course held by York Sunbury Search and Rescue recently. THE DAILY GLEANER/LORI GALLAGHER PHOTO

By LORI GALLAGHER
lgallagh@dailygleaner.com

During a search for a missing person, timing is critical. So is proper training.

That's why having a group like York Sunbury Search and Rescue around is so important.

"We are very highly trained professional volunteers," says Stephen Moore, search manager with the group.

"We're on call 24/7, 365 days of the year. We search day or night, it doesn't make a difference."

He adds, "Whenever we're needed, we're there." Moore has been a member of York Sunbury Search and Rescue for 16 years.

"I've always been interested in being out in the woods," he says, noting that the organization was a good match for his skills.

"Plus I thought it would be a good idea to help save a life, which is our ultimate goal." The group, which currently has 65 members, is run 100 per cent by volunteers.

"What we do is we assist policing agencies, in our case it could be the RCMP or the city police, to find lost or missing persons.

That's our number one mandate," explains Moore.

"However, over the years, we've also changed, so we now help them out in criminal investigations." For example, if someone is murdered and their body is found in the woods, the group might be called in to help search for additional evidence.

There are 10 search and rescue groups in the province. The York Sunbury Search and Rescue covers primarily York, Sunbury, Queens and Northumberland counties.

The group gets called out anywhere between five and 10 times a year. In 2005, the volunteers were called out five times, including a five-day search.

"We've been called out twice this year already," says Moore.

To ensure that the members are ready when that calls comes, the group holds regular training sessions, covering everything from survival skills to helicopter safety.

HANDS-ON TRAINING: In the photo at left, Stephen Moore, right, a volunteer ground search and rescue instructor, has a final chat with Theresa McGuire and Derrick Koller before they head into the woods surrounding Killarney Lake to complete an assignment using their newly learned GPS skills. And in the photo at right, McGuire and Koller, members of York Sunbury Search and Rescue, check out a map of the Killarney Lake area. THE DAILY GLEANER/LORI GALLAGHER PHOTOS

Last weekend, it held a GPS (Global Positioning System) training session that involved classroom training followed by a hands-on exercise in the woods surrounding Killarney Park.

This brought together 16 students assisted by six ground search and rescue volunteer instructors, including Moore.

Theresa McGuire and Derrick Koller were two of the students involved in the training session.

McGuire is a relatively new member of York Sunbury Search and Rescue, as she just joined in October.

She says she has a mix of personal and professional reasons for becoming part of the group.

Professionally, she is a registered nurse who specializes in occupational health and safety, so many of the skills she has are a good fit for search and rescue work.

"I'm also ex-military," says McGuire. "I love to be out in the woods." One of her personal reasons for being involved can be traced back to a little boy who was lost in the woods near Beaverdam a few years ago.

"My kids are 10 and 12 now, but at that time, my son was about the same age as the little fellow that was lost," she says.

That was the first time she had heard about York Sunbury Search and Rescue.

She was unable to help with that search, but knew then she wanted to be part of the group.

"It fit my interests and my skills." As well, her family experienced what can happen when there isn't an organized group to help, explains McGuire.

About 50 years ago, her great-grandmother, who was suffering from Alzheimer's, went missing in Saint John. It was four months before her body was found.

"That was just torture for them," says McGuire, not knowing what happened for so long.

"We don't always have a happy ending," she says, but the group can help give people peace of mind. "And at least the hope that somebody is actively searching."

McGuire is excited to be part of the search and rescue team, she says, noting that the group brings together a real mix of people.

"There is a lot of training involved. We have monthly meetings and at least one training event a month, sometimes more," she says. "Safety is a critical thing with our profession."

Koller is going on his fourth year with York Sunbury Search and Rescue.

He originally got involved because he wanted to help out the community.

He wanted to volunteer with a group where he wasn't only helping people, but one that would allow him to be outdoors. York Sunbury Search and Rescue fit the bill.


Koller has also enjoyed learning new skills, including how to use the Global Positioning System.

"The GPS is a fairly new technology for us and it's a very valuable tool to know where we're going and where we come across evidence of something we can mark," he says.

This can be especially helpful when searching for evidence.

"If we find something and want to mark it, we can call back coordinates," he says.

Prior to this, the searchers would have a general idea of where they were, but this new technology really helps them be more specific.

The different kinds of training the group members get is invaluable, says Koller.

"It eliminates errors and allows us to get better." Besides training and helping with searches, York Sunbury Search and Rescue does its share of fundraising.

The group has an annual operating budget of $10,000, with provincial government contributions only covering $3,500. Members need to raise the remaining $6,500.

On top of this, to be able to serve the community better, the group is raising an additional $75,000 to replace the teams 16-year-old command post (cube van) and upgrade its search equipment.

As well, York Sunbury Search and Rescue is always looking for new volunteers.

So who would make a good volunteer for this organization?

"Somebody that loves the outdoors, all types of weather, because typically we get called out at the worst times," says Moore. "And someone who wants to help the community out; someone who cares."

Being part of the group also brings a number of benefits.

"You can meet a lot of great people here," he says, plus you get a lot of training in things you might now know.

"It is a great feeling to be part of the group and to help serve the community," says Moore.

For more information about York Sunbury Search and Rescue, visit www.yssr.nb.ca or call 461-5832.