Organizational Politics & SAR

In many cases it seems frustrating to have to deal with organizational politics in Search and Rescue. After all, we are there to help and we are volunteering our valuable time to provide resources for whatever overseeing agency you “report” to. We are here to save lives right? Not bicker about the various aspects of day to day operations.

Well, as much as I hate to admit it, organizational politics are likely here to stay. In every organization I’ve been part of since my early teens as a Sea Explorer there have been politics. Sometimes it was someone working toward a leadership role and other times it was drama about who said what and how words and thoughts get turned around. Whatever the case, it can seem like one or a group are trying to sway the crowd to go along with their way of thinking. Often times, the reality is that perceptions get clouded because of personalities. Unfortunately, there are times when actions are because of personalities usually resulting in feeling getting hurt and a wedge gets pushed deeper causing a further separation of the unit.

I have learned that, like it or not, politics are part of any organization. However, I have a very low tolerance for politics while on a mission and zero tolerance when a life is on the line (especially mine). To avoid this I have found that finding a working relationship or agreeing to disagree seems to work. While I probably have a bigger ego than I’d like to think, trying to remove egos from a heated topic is often difficult, but ultimately effective. Realizing that politics exist is the first step, the next step is never losing focus of the mission of Search & Rescue, to help people.

Good Article in the Jan. 2011 edition of Outside Magazine

On a recent trip to see family over the holidays I picked up the Jan. 2011 edition of Outside Magazine. I found an article called, “The Man Who Saw Too Much” about an Aspen Mountain Rescue veteran who now suffers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). My first thought was, Crap, I’ve been scooped since I have an article for BCR sitting on my computer for final edits written along similar lines. Then I realized that bringing PTSD to light in SAR is very important and that any information about this could help someone. Also, the Outside article mainly focuses on the Aspen Veteran and not how to begin working through various missions. Finally, the article for BCR was written by a licensed psychotherapist and think will be a useful tool.

I highly recommend reading the Outside Magazine article and will post the link when it is available on Outside Online. In SAR we see things that can have lasting impact on our psyche and we must work hard to be mindful of how we are impacted.

Why does it take so long to get the subject's cell phone lat/long?

The short answer: Turns out that law enforcement must send a fax, yes a fax to the cell phone service provider to get permission for the cell company to "ping" the specific cell phone. Ah ha! It is a privacy issue, glad big brother isn't tracking my Costco runs.

But the person already called 911 isn't that enough? Turns out the answer is yes & no. When a person calls 911, location information is sent to the 911 operator along with the person's name and telephone number. Most phones these days have a GPS chip which is activated when a 911 call is placed, but if you own a GPS you know it takes a few minutes to aquire an accurate location. The 911 operator may get the initial tower triangulation location which may or may not be accurate.

If the caller hangs up or is diconnected on the 911 call, the 911 operator calls back as part of proceedure. If they are able to get an answer, then further location infomation may be obtained. If there is no answer, then the operator may assign the call to an officer who then begins the process of getting location information on the phone. Thus the whole fax process.

There is actually some more detail about which cell companies (network technology) can "ping" a phone, but I'll save that for an upcoming article on Backcountry Rescuer.

Need to figure out what food to take in my pack

I was recently at a safety fair for a local company where they had various "safety" agencies. One of the booths was for fitness, blood pressure and measure fat. Since I wasn't getting much interest in my booth filled with rescue equipment, I strolled over to the fitness booth. I talked with one of the personal trainers about the types of foods I should be carrying in my pack. I pulled my food back out of my pack and reviewed the contents.

• a couple Power Bar gels
• Cliff Bar shot blocks
• Snickers bar

The personal trainer gave a bit of a groan and then gave me a look. I gave a curious look back, "What" not nutritious enough? Apparently the foods I had in my pack are basic sugars that will last me for a while, but will then burn out quickly. The trainer mentioned a couple of things to consider like coconut water (yeah, coconut water). I've never heard of it, but I'd be willing to give it a try. We then got interrupted by attendees and I didn't get a chance to talk with the trainer more, but I've got their email and plan to find out more on the ideal foods.

The whole conversation got me thinking about what to carry in my food back for hiking and climbing. I've typically been find with Pilot Bread (big saltine crackers w/o the salt), chocolate and a Cliff Bar or Odwalla bar. I plan to find out more from the trainer and figure out what to do next.

If you have any favorite hiking foods please let me know.

More on 911 calling from the backcountry

So you have a good reason to call 911 in the backcountry, your are injured and are not able to self-rescue, you are significantly lost or you forgot your flashlight and are not prepared to spend the night outdoors. You call 911 even though you don't have a carrier signal. You are able to get out on the e911 network and get help started. You give the 911 operator details of where you think you are:

• The trailhead you started from and the route you are on or planned to go on
• If lost, were you left the trail
• If injured, the best location of your injured party and condition
• Details about if you are prepared for a night outdoors

When the 911 operator dispatches the Search and Rescue (SAR) unit the 911 operator will likely share these details with the SAR unit or Sheriff. Many times, a person from the SAR unit or Sheriff will want to call you back to get further details that may help them locate you.

Here is where it gets interesting if you called 911 without a carrier signal. Neither the 911 operator nor the Sheriff/SAR unit will not be able to call you back to get further details. The reason is that your phone does not have a carrier signal and cannot receive incoming calls without a carrier signal. Essentially, this is the same as if one of your friends were trying to call you and you are out of coverage. The only reason you are able to make a call to 911 is that all carriers are required by law to carry a 911 call. You phone is essentially a radio programmed to a specific frequency (your carrier), when you call 911 however, the phone uses a universal frequency that all carriers support (a specific 911 frequency if you will).

Keeping this in mind, you may want to give the 911 operator a call back after an hour to see if they need any further information on your location. This may or may not work as you call may be seen as a new "service ticket" or might be able to be sync'd or merged with the ongoing "service ticket."

Finally, after you have called the 911 operator back, you probably should try to preserve you phone's battery by turning it off. With no bars, your phone will continue to search for a network which requires additional battery power.

Hopefully you will never need to call 911 from the backcountry, but if you do it is helpful to have some ideas about how phone systems work and that you may be able to call 911 without having to hike for a signal.