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Hank Lunsford
Search and rescue team members search for avalanche victims
Jan. 7 at Silver Mountain Resort in Kellogg, Idaho.
New technology
helps search teams
in Pacifi c Northwest
was one of Oregon’s fi rst to include
drones in their search and rescue mis-
sions. They started a yearlong training
By COURTNEY FLATT
about three years ago.
Northwest News Network
“I always thought that we would
try to push the envelope a little bit
Last year, Washington state’s King
on technology,” Gubele said. “The
County Search and Rescue was look-
whole goal was to try to leverage the
ing for a man who’d fallen in a very
technology that was available to fi nd
fast-moving river. They thought he
missing people.”
might still be in the water, but the
Gubele said many groups use dif-
banks were super steep and slick with
ferent types of drones in their rescue
mud.
missions, depending on the situation.
It’d be easy for even an experi-
Some rescuers may hike with more
enced searcher to fall in and be swept
hobby-style drones they can use to
away, no matter if they were wearing
peek over cliffs.
a fl oatation device.
Other times, groups will use more
To make things safer — and faster
high-tech drones, outfi tted with multi-
— they turned to technology. Specifi -
ple video cameras, and at times, ther-
cally, a drone.
mal cameras. Software also allows
The drone was able to zoom along
searchers to fi lter out colors to, say,
the river, up and down the bank. The
search for a red backpack. The drone
man wasn’t there, and search teams
Mountain Wave uses also has the
were able to quickly move along.
ability to deliver small rescue items,
“(Drones) allow us to search areas
like radios or survival equipment, to
that would be more dangerous to res-
stranded or injured hikers.
cuers,” said Glenn Wallace, the for-
The group has used drones at the
mer president of King County’s search
Oregon C oast and in the Columbia
and rescue team. “It’s really about
River Gorge, among other missions,
thinking about places like avalanche
Gubele said.
fi elds over a cliff, along a fast-moving
“I do think that there is going to
river — places that we
be a lot more usage
would hesitate to send
of (drones). We’ve
people to.”
already seen that since
‘(DRONES)
In those cases,
we started,” Gubele
ALLOW US TO
drones help teams
said. “What to watch
quickly fi gure out
for, just like with
SEARCH AREAS out
whether the person
any technology, is if
they’re looking for
THAT WOULD
you don’t use it a lot
is over that cliff or in
or don’t train a lot
BE MORE
that dangerous river,
with it, you might not
instead of spending
be as effective as you
DANGEROUS
precious time get-
need to be.”
TO RESCUERS.’
ting into that area and
Other technology
putting the searchers
that has aided tradi-
Glenn Wallace | former
at-risk.
tional search and res-
president of King County’s
Or, if the drones
cue efforts have actu-
search and rescue team
see clues that a per-
ally been cell phones,
son might be in a pre-
Gubele said.
carious spot — like
“That’s made it a
a jacket the missing person was last
lot easier to fi nd lost people, provided
wearing — that helps rescuers know,
they can get some cell coverage,”
“it’s worth the effort and the risk to
Gubele said. “That technology has
send a team in there to look,” Wallace
gotten better and better and better.”
said.
Emergency cell calls can be less
The volunteer group has used
accurate when coming from very
drones in about eight missions so far,
remote locations. That’s where a pro-
Wallace said, with around 20 trained
gram called Enhanced-911 can help.
pilots. They work in tandem with the
King County’s Glenn Wallace said
sheriff’s offi ce, although the drones
E-911 has reduced the number of
are owned either by the rescue group
multi-day missions search crews have
or individual volunteers. The group
to go on.
fi rst started to look into using drones
“It’d say it is now seldom that we
to help with search and rescue efforts
have an overnight or multi-day mis-
in January 2019.
sion for someone who is missing in
Like with any technology, there
the wilderness,” Wallace said.
are drawbacks. Drones can be hard
New mapping technology, called
to use when there are lots of trees
SARTopo, also helps groups bet-
around, which can limit both drones
ter plan their searches before they
and helicopters.
start. Recently, RECCO technology,
“A lot of our search and rescue
which is a refl ector sometimes found
efforts are still going to be on foot,
in clothing and boots, helped fi nd
calling out the subject’s name and try-
the body of the third person killed
ing to fi nd them,” Wallace said.
by an avalanche on Silver Mountain,
The weather, the Federal Aviation
according to the Spokesman-Review.
Administration fl ight rules for drones
The King County group also out-
and the resolution of the camera can
fi ts their searchers with GPS dog col-
also limit drone efforts.
lars on carabiners, Wallace said. That
In Oregon, Mountain Wave Search
makes it easier to track each individ-
and Rescue formed in the early ’90s,
ual searcher in the fi eld.
a few years after a group from Oregon
While new technology may aid
Episcopal School became stranded on
search efforts, it’s not meant to replace
Mount Hood. Nine people died in the
traditional on-the-ground rescuers or
disaster.
in-the-air helicopter pilots. Search and
Paramedic Russell Gubele decided
rescue groups say they use each tactic
to co-found a volunteer rescue group
differently — drones could be good
specializing in technology and com-
for steep ravines, whereas helicopters
munications, after struggling through
could better search large areas.
communications setbacks during the
“Both things are always going to
Mount Hood rescue.
have to exist side by side,” Wallace
Nearly 30 years later, with the
said. “It’s sort of art and science that
group’s technological bent, it wasn’t
we use, and I think it’s just going to
surprising to Gubele that his team
keep evolving.”
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