Posts Tagged ‘Search Control’

What is a Search Pre-Plan?

December 8th, 2009

As Daryl asked so nicely I’ve decided to write some more about search pre-plans and what should go in one.

Different SAR teams have different templates, content and so on. It is difficult then to give a definitive answer.
However, the way to look at the question is not what should go in the pre-plan, but rather what would be useful to me when I come to search this particular area next week, month or year?

So put on your Search Controller hat for a second.

Firstly, where am I going to put Control?
Will this search be run from the local police station, an office or building on-site, or your Unit’s mobile Control Unit? Having made this decision, write it down and find out how to put this into action when the call comes in. Who would you need to speak to? Is the room always available? Is there a parking space for the van? Power? and so on…

Next, where is the RV point going to be?
Asking all the usual questions, sufficient parking, close by etc. This solves a big problem if the Search Controller already has this detail to hand when they need to call the team out.

A long time is spent sorting out mapping for any incident, so get it sorted now.
Pre-sector the map.
Consider having pre-printed sector maps for teams, or if not have them saved and ready to print out first thing. Make sure you have walked all the areas – mark on potential hazards, what PPE gear is required, issues that might affect the search and so on. Digital photos are easy to take and give the Search Management Team and Team Leader an idea of what the sector is going to be like. If access is required, give the relevant people’s names and phone numbers.

Will you need specialist resources for any of the areas?
Dogs? Rope Access? Boats [Maybe a Search and Rescue Hovercraft?]? Underwater Search? In most instances, the sooner they are notified the better. Have you got their contact numbers? The names of the relevant people? If you know before getting there they will be needed they can be on route whilst you are.

I keep mentioning names; the great benefit of a search pre-plan is that people get to know one another before the event. In some cases even knowing that one or other group exists! This has been proven time and time again to benefit the management of the incident. The plan may never work, but at least the people involved can work together.

A search pre-plan is just that; a search plan, ready to go when you need it.

Once it’s done, of course, it needs to be tested, training needs to be done and so on; but that’s another post for another day.

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Search exercise planners handbook – Part Seven

December 1st, 2009

Briefings

Out of necessity search exercises require two briefings. When it suits the exercise the first “exercise” briefing can be given to everyone attending all at once, with the “scenario” briefing being given to just the Search Management Team to allow them to brief the teams as they want. If the exercise is intended to practise callout procedures or similar then the “exercise” briefing may have to be given prior to the exercise, or in some circumstances the Search Management Team may have to give this briefing as part of the briefings to teams along with the scenarios and taskings.

What then is the difference?

All exercises should have an “exercise” briefing. This should clearly inform the participants of the parameters and objectives of the exercise. Participants learn more if given a “hook” to hang their learning on; an objective to aim for. [Interestingly research shows that you learn more overall if you are given a theme or objective, even learning more about subjects outside this theme, than if you aren't given any target or specific area to focus on!]

The “exercise” briefing can be used to inform participants of where they can and can’t go, how much to harass the local population and so on. Health and Safety should be mentioned at this point, outlining potential hazards if appropriate, reminding participants it is an exercise and we put ourselves in less risk during exercises than we would in actual incidents, and outlining procedures for any actual incident happening whilst on the exercise. This might include what would happen if a real search callout happened, or what would happen if an injury occurred or a member of the public required assistance.

Instructions on how the radios should be used during the exercise – possibly the use of “exercise message” prefix to all radio traffic – should be given along with any PRO-Words that should be used in the event of a real incident [NO DUFF?]

The “scenario” briefing can then be given. This should be as realistic as possible, even if this is not the most interesting. In some circumstances the Search Management Team can be given lots of information, in others limited information – again look back over past incidents. How much information are you generally given? If you ask for more, is this given? and when?

Use these answers as a guide to what scenario briefings should be like.

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Search exercise planners handbook – Part Four

November 11th, 2009

or Terrain Analysis for Search Exercises

Once you have selected your search area, looked at the practicalities of holding the search exercise and gone about gaining the required permissions, you need to undertake a terrain analysis of the whole search area. You will need to look at the possible search sectors, the hazards and the health & safety for the search exercise.

Planning a search exercise requires a good knowledge of Search Control / Search Management. Because at this stage you are going to need to sit down with a map and try to think like the Control Team and work out the various ways in which they might sector the map. [Do not sector the map for them; they need the practice. Just look at what they might potentially do]

Are there sufficient search sectors for the numbers expected on the exercise? Or are there too many; too large? and so on. This is a difficult job. You will need to be able to look at a map, and indeed on the ground, and be able to estimate search times for the terrain/conditions. Getting an exercise right means being able to judge how long it will take to search the ground, and not relying too often on “intelligence gathered” or “sightings” to put teams in the right area. [How realistic is that?]

You will need to get out on the ground. This will help you to do the above, but what you really need to be doing is looking for those hazards and health and safety issues that just cannot be seen from a map.

This is not to say we should wrap our searchers up in cotton wool – it is possible to have a perfectly safe search (and search exercise); just don’t do it and leave the misper to it. Or we could trust our searchers to make sensible risk managment decisions on the ground?

What you are really trying to do is identify any potential issues, hazards and health & safety issues in order to decide beforehand how to manage them. It might be briefing the search control team prior to the exercise or it might just be ensuring suitable PPE is available if and when the issue is identified. Either way, knowing in advance is best.

ALSAR Units should have a generic risk assessment for search. However, anyone planning an exercise should carry out their own risk assessment for the exercise. Ask those, What If? questions. Do we need first aid cover? Do we need a safety team available? Where is the nearest hospital? and so on.

As I said before, better to prepare in advance, than rely solely upon your searchers’ professionalism all the time; they DESERVE BETTER!

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Search exercise planners handbook – Part Three

November 2nd, 2009

Once you have decided on potential search areas, based upon historic data etc. you then need to thing about the practicalities of the exercise. Issues like where will you run the search from? RVs, parking, welfare and so on.

Parking is always an issue when search volunteers are traveling from around the county to the exercise. You need to think about how many cars will be arriving and where to put them. Very few places will accommodate on-street parking for so many cars so local supermarkets, car parks etc. will need to be found.

Permissions need to be sought; for parking but also for search areas. This may mean visiting or phoning in advance and asking land owners, hospitals etc. for permission to exercise and mapping out where search managers can and cannot search and suitable RV points and Control Points. (Whilst these are generally close to each other, a couple of hundred metres between the two can be advantageous!)

You will also need to consider the local residents and neighbours. Whilst it is often great publicity for locals to see you out and about; this can turn against you if your exercise annoys or inconvenience them. Careful thought in advance about how to deal with this is important, and you may want to consider a letter to inform any really nearby neighbours what is happening. This is a good opportunity to inform them about what you do too.

The welfare of volunteers is important too. Many will have travelled for an hour or so, maybe straight from work so nearby toilet facilities are a big plus point.

The more you think about the practicalities beforehand – the smoother the exercise!

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Search Terminology

October 19th, 2009

Apologies for those hoping this next post would the next installment of the search exercise planners handbook – don’t panic though, it will be written this week.

First though, I’ve been thinking about some search terminology for a while and I wanted to get this off my chest now, as it were.

So often within ALSAR the words Search Techniques are used to mean anything from the search cube and purposeful wandering – which I would actually call search techniques – to how to search a route and path and so on.

These days I have changed the way I use these wordings.

When I talk about “search techniques” now, I am referring to an individual’s searching. When I want to talk about how you would go about searching a field, house or route and path, I now use the wording “search tactics”. Finally, when I am referring to the search management/control team and how they manage the search, I talk about the “search plan”.

I’ll add more search terminology soon…

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