Frequently Asked Questions
- What is PNWSAR?
Pacific Northwest Search and Rescue (PNWSAR) is an all-volunteer, non-profit (501(c)(3)) search and rescue team. We currently have more than 50 volunteers dedicated to helping people lost or injured out of doors. The people who make up our search and rescue team come from all walks of life, but we do share one common interest: helping people that are lost or injured in the out of doors.
PNWSAR team members live throughout the Willamette Valley in Oregon. We are firefighters, business and high-tech professionals, police officers, retirees, medical professionals, construction workers, and more. Our team is highly skilled in ground-based search and rescue techniques, dedicating at least one weekend a month to training, and countless hours each year on actual searches.
- What do you do?
We provide highly trained field operations and ground support teams for search and rescue. We also support command post operations and provide base camp assistance for official rescue missions which by Oregon law, are run or overseen by the County Sheriff. Additionally, we have a 4x4 transportation team that participates in road containment, personnel transportation, and 4WD searches. We also provide emergency blood transport for the American Red Cross, radio communication specialists for large or mountainous search areas, educational and safety booths at locally based events and assistance during disasterous events (floods etc...).
Our expertise is ground search operations. We focus our training on the development and maintenance of outdoor search and survival skills above and below the timberline. In short, we are ground pounders. A ground pounder is someone who dares to go into the depths of the Pacific Northwest's woods, off the trail, up and down drainages, battling blackberry briars and vine maple, and crossing rivers while searching for people who are lost or injured.
- Can you give some specifics?
- We search for missing people out of doors.
- We reach and rescue ill or injured people out of doors.
- We stay on 24-hour standby, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.We maintain high levels of training in all areas related to wilderness rescue, survival and navigation.
- We respond safely, quickly, and efficiently when called by the Sheriff any time, any day, any location, any weather.
- We respond to all callouts from the Sheriff Department without discrimination of race, sex, religion, gender, or ethnicity of the missing person(s).
- Is there anything you don't do?
- We do not respond to your call directly. We respond through the Clackamas County Sheriff's Department (503-655-8218, or 911 in an emergency).
- We do not turn down any call, day or night. We don't get holidays or weekends off, we don't wait for daylight to start searching.
- We do not charge anything for our services. We are a volunteer organization.
- To follow the above point, we do not get paid.
- We do not turn down a call because of bad weather.
- We do not judge, criticize, or lecture people who get lost or injured. It can happen to anyone.
- What happens when you are activated?
That depends on the type of mission it is. We have two basic types of search and rescue scenarios.
The first type of search, called a pack out, is when we know where the person is and they need our assistance because of illness or injury. When we get a pack out call, we pack in first aid equipment, a Stokes litter for transport, and items needed to make the sick or injured person comfortable and safe (dry clothes and blankets, warm drinks and food, etc.). We send a hasty-team and medical personnel in to the person's location, administer any necessary first aid, pack them up and bring them out. This is for serious illness or injury only.
The second type of search is what most people think of when they think of search and rescue: a lost hiker, hunter, child, boater, etc.. These searches can be based anywhere from a remote wilderness area to an urban shopping mall. It involves more searchers--often several different search teams--and can last for several days. As searchers arrive at the search base they are briefed and given information about the missing person(s) and are sent out in teams to begin searching. Search days can be 12-15 hours long or more and some searchers will cover as much as 20-30 miles or more in a day. In certain situations searchers will camp in the field throughout the night in case the missing person is on the move at night.
While many people think search and rescue is about finding lost hikers alive, sometimes the outcome is not so pleasant. In addition to live person rescues, we also do evidence searches, body recoveries and suicide searches. We do not participate in searches for escaped criminals or known dangerous persons. See the Join Us page for more information on things you should know before joining any Search and Rescue team.
- How do you know where to search?
All persons responsible for managing search operations (MSO) have extensive training in calculating search areas. Starting at the last point the person was known to be, we put teams on the trails and off the trails. We search drainages, rivers, canyons, overhangs and all of the ground and brush in and around the search perimeter. Multiple teams will search the same area, which gives us a higher probability of detection. This ensures that each and every area is searched completely and thoroughly not only once, but several times.
We conduct night searches as well as day searches. Our hope is that the missing person is not on the move at night, making it easier for us to find them. A moving target can be very difficult to locate.
We work closely with the authorities and other search teams to maximize the effectiveness of our searches. This includes working with police, trackers, canines, horses, high-angle teams, airplanes, helicopters (military & civilian), Forest Service personnel, and many others.
- How much money would involvement cost me?
We require a $5.00 non-refundable application process fee when you decide to apply for membership.
We each pay $25.00 in annual dues.
You are responsible for providing your own equipment, fuel and food on search missions. Certain items such as radios, avalanche tranceivers and GPS's are provided during searches or training exercises for those that do not have their own.