For Emergency call outs, please call us at 941-548-7560 (no text messages please) and leave a voice message. Also, You can fill out the form below or email us at [email protected], 24 hours a day,
7 days a week.
From the FOUNDER of the peace river k9 search & rescue association.
The Pros and Cons of Volunteer Civilian Searchers
Large scale search & rescue happens infrequently in the State of Florida. As such most Law Enforcement Agencies do not maintain a SAR team due to the expense. However, Search and Rescue will continue to be handled locally through the Law Enforcement Agency having jurisdiction. This is where the volunteer SAR teams fill in the gap. On the good side, the civilian teams spend more time training in SAR than their Law Enforcement (LE) and Fire Safety (FD) counterparts. Due to budget constraints many LE and Fire/Safety departments cannot go to seminars or seek out the best instructors in SAR as the Civilian teams can. This has resulted with the civilian responders taking the lead because of their advanced training.
On the bad side, we live and die on our credibility and reliability. I cannot tell you all the stories I have heard about the miraculous Bloodhound that tracked the missing girl 7 years after she disappeared or the wondrous Cadaver dog that has a "zillion" finds and never offered a miss, or the fake Facebook postings showing call outs they never did nor were ever requested! I investigated as many of these claims as I heard and have even paid for demonstration of the dog’s prowess only to be disappointed at the results. I am a person that believes all people start with the best of intentions, but the pressure to be recognized or take on searches that are beyond a person’s ability often reveals character flaws that sorely need to be addressed. Law Enforcement agencies take a big gamble in using a volunteer civilian team and we at PRSAR take this trust seriously. All of our teams will have their criminal background checks, their logbooks (PTB), and credentials available for inspection at any time. We constantly train with blind and double-blind problems so our searchers are the best we can offer. We train hard to be prepared and we will do an outstanding job on the searches we choose to take on.
Large scale search & rescue happens infrequently in the State of Florida. As such most Law Enforcement Agencies do not maintain a SAR team due to the expense. However, Search and Rescue will continue to be handled locally through the Law Enforcement Agency having jurisdiction. This is where the volunteer SAR teams fill in the gap. On the good side, the civilian teams spend more time training in SAR than their Law Enforcement (LE) and Fire Safety (FD) counterparts. Due to budget constraints many LE and Fire/Safety departments cannot go to seminars or seek out the best instructors in SAR as the Civilian teams can. This has resulted with the civilian responders taking the lead because of their advanced training.
On the bad side, we live and die on our credibility and reliability. I cannot tell you all the stories I have heard about the miraculous Bloodhound that tracked the missing girl 7 years after she disappeared or the wondrous Cadaver dog that has a "zillion" finds and never offered a miss, or the fake Facebook postings showing call outs they never did nor were ever requested! I investigated as many of these claims as I heard and have even paid for demonstration of the dog’s prowess only to be disappointed at the results. I am a person that believes all people start with the best of intentions, but the pressure to be recognized or take on searches that are beyond a person’s ability often reveals character flaws that sorely need to be addressed. Law Enforcement agencies take a big gamble in using a volunteer civilian team and we at PRSAR take this trust seriously. All of our teams will have their criminal background checks, their logbooks (PTB), and credentials available for inspection at any time. We constantly train with blind and double-blind problems so our searchers are the best we can offer. We train hard to be prepared and we will do an outstanding job on the searches we choose to take on.
Changing the Paradigm
In the Spring of 2015 the Board of Directors decided to take a different direction with Volunteer Search & Rescue (VSAR) in Florida. For years, many so called SAR teams were really nothing more than glorified dog clubs and the lack of standards and common training caused great safety concerns that made many search operations unsafe and ineffective. During some of these searches, volunteer teams performed so poorly that areas already searched and marked "cleared" had to be searched again when victims were discovered in these "cleared" areas. The problem was and continues to be a lack of vision, standards and training.
As of this writing, The State of Florida has set no standards for volunteer SAR teams and has no interest in developing any. The result is that many volunteer teams lack good training and exhibit very unprofessional behavior. They compete among themselves for call-outs, start gossip and slander campaigns while exhibiting other behaviors in the field which are quite inappropriate. PRSAR does not participate in this unprofessional behavior. We stand alone on our training, evaluations, outside agency certifications, and ASTM standards. Our focus is strictly on the recovery of the victim.
In the Spring of 2015 the Board of Directors decided to take a different direction with Volunteer Search & Rescue (VSAR) in Florida. For years, many so called SAR teams were really nothing more than glorified dog clubs and the lack of standards and common training caused great safety concerns that made many search operations unsafe and ineffective. During some of these searches, volunteer teams performed so poorly that areas already searched and marked "cleared" had to be searched again when victims were discovered in these "cleared" areas. The problem was and continues to be a lack of vision, standards and training.
As of this writing, The State of Florida has set no standards for volunteer SAR teams and has no interest in developing any. The result is that many volunteer teams lack good training and exhibit very unprofessional behavior. They compete among themselves for call-outs, start gossip and slander campaigns while exhibiting other behaviors in the field which are quite inappropriate. PRSAR does not participate in this unprofessional behavior. We stand alone on our training, evaluations, outside agency certifications, and ASTM standards. Our focus is strictly on the recovery of the victim.
Professional Level Training
As mentioned earlier, Peace River K9 Search & Rescue Association took an agency approach rather than the team (club) approach of the past. Protocols and evaluation standards were developed based on adopted ASTM standards and enforced through regular training and evaluations by scheduled evaluations. Peace River K9 SAR volunteers spend a minimum of 20 hours per month training in First Aid, Patient assessment, stabilization and packaging, Advanced Land Navigation/GPS, Search strategies and techniques, Report writing and courtroom testimony, Low Angle Technical Rope Rescue, CERT, Swiftwater Rescue and much more. Our K9 teams train a minimum of 16 hours per month and all animal assets are trained with positive and humane training methods. We strive hard to stay current with the latest Animal Training methods and science. Our Search Specialists, whether they are Divers, Flankers, Medical Specialist, JEEP or UAV operators, will be highly trained and very competent. PRSAR is set up to be a stand alone unit capable of operations in a disaster environment for One week. We have our own Command & Control, Radios and other equipment making the demands on EOC or Law Enforcement very light. Our Searchers are trained to quickly merge in with existing operations and will get to work, getting the job done, and done correctly, when deployed. All of this is provided to the requesting Agency at no cost!
As mentioned earlier, Peace River K9 Search & Rescue Association took an agency approach rather than the team (club) approach of the past. Protocols and evaluation standards were developed based on adopted ASTM standards and enforced through regular training and evaluations by scheduled evaluations. Peace River K9 SAR volunteers spend a minimum of 20 hours per month training in First Aid, Patient assessment, stabilization and packaging, Advanced Land Navigation/GPS, Search strategies and techniques, Report writing and courtroom testimony, Low Angle Technical Rope Rescue, CERT, Swiftwater Rescue and much more. Our K9 teams train a minimum of 16 hours per month and all animal assets are trained with positive and humane training methods. We strive hard to stay current with the latest Animal Training methods and science. Our Search Specialists, whether they are Divers, Flankers, Medical Specialist, JEEP or UAV operators, will be highly trained and very competent. PRSAR is set up to be a stand alone unit capable of operations in a disaster environment for One week. We have our own Command & Control, Radios and other equipment making the demands on EOC or Law Enforcement very light. Our Searchers are trained to quickly merge in with existing operations and will get to work, getting the job done, and done correctly, when deployed. All of this is provided to the requesting Agency at no cost!
PRSAR's International Humanitarian Role
The year of 2019 will be remembered as the year PRSAR went international. The Association fielded service requests from Costa Rica, Guam, Dominica, St Johns, Puerto Rico, Albania, South America, South Africa and the Bahamas. PRSAR supports International Rescue and Humanitarian Forensic Action with neutrality, independence and impartiality which is grounded in International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and guided by humanitarian principals. Since PRSAR's formal creation in 2010, PRSAR has an obligation under International Humanitarian Law (IHL) to promote the protection of the deceased as a victim category. With Teams now active in other countries we work as part of a multidisciplinary team (anthropologists, archaeologists, pathologists, odonatologists, geneticists, etc.), the International Deployment unit of PRSAR accompanies governments, experts, associations and other actors involved in the management of the victims to ensure an optimized search and identification process. The main priorities are to adapt the practices to the different cultures and religions and support the medico-legal systems efficiently in order to have a sustainable impact.
The year of 2019 will be remembered as the year PRSAR went international. The Association fielded service requests from Costa Rica, Guam, Dominica, St Johns, Puerto Rico, Albania, South America, South Africa and the Bahamas. PRSAR supports International Rescue and Humanitarian Forensic Action with neutrality, independence and impartiality which is grounded in International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and guided by humanitarian principals. Since PRSAR's formal creation in 2010, PRSAR has an obligation under International Humanitarian Law (IHL) to promote the protection of the deceased as a victim category. With Teams now active in other countries we work as part of a multidisciplinary team (anthropologists, archaeologists, pathologists, odonatologists, geneticists, etc.), the International Deployment unit of PRSAR accompanies governments, experts, associations and other actors involved in the management of the victims to ensure an optimized search and identification process. The main priorities are to adapt the practices to the different cultures and religions and support the medico-legal systems efficiently in order to have a sustainable impact.
Respectfully,
Michael Hadsell
President
Peace River K9 Search and Rescue Association, Inc.
A Florida non profit 501c3 CH 31988 IRS 27-1584186
“A Righteous man regardeth the life of his beast” – Proverbs 12:10 KJV
Michael Hadsell
President
Peace River K9 Search and Rescue Association, Inc.
A Florida non profit 501c3 CH 31988 IRS 27-1584186
“A Righteous man regardeth the life of his beast” – Proverbs 12:10 KJV
