Members of 442 Transport and Rescue Squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force are in Kamloops this week conducting search and rescue (SAR) training.
Tuesday morning’s search and rescue exercise went off without a hitch as two SAR Techs and a helicopter crew were able to simulate saving three people from a plane crash just west of Kamloops.
The search and rescue mission started at the Kamloops Airport. With members from the Civil Air Search and Rescue Association on board, the helicopter crew were able to locate the crash.
“The simulation was a helicopter that crashed at 5 a.m. We showed up on scene, saw one survivor in the middle of the field waving at the side of the mountain. We immediately put together a plan of landing there because it was a big open area,” said Master Cpl. Alexandre Demers.
As one of the SAR Techs, Demers says he has to be ready for any situation. He could be jumping or hanging out of the plane to save a life, or like in this case, walking off of the helicopter to get a closer look at the situation.
The casualties in the exercise were played by members of the Rocky Mountain Rangers. The members acted out the scenario and injuries.
“The first guy in the middle of the field had an open wound to the right forearm. He was conscious, he knew where his buddies were, their medical conditions and all of that,” said Demers. “When we moved to the other two casualties they were unconscious. Reason of unconsciousness was probably trauma and cold so we started warming them up with our warming devices and splinting their injuries.”
The two unconscious casualties moaned and groaned as the SAR Techs assessed the situation. In this case, one had an injury to the shoulder and the other to the ankle.
During a rescue, the SAR Techs come with an array of medical equipment from medicine, splints, and IVs. The techs also bring enough food, water, and shelter to last several days, just in case.
“It’s a nice and sunny day but it’s still 10 degrees so for somebody in trauma, bleeding out, temperature is a big thing. Warming them up and trying to put them out of the way of the elements, that was our biggest priority and then extraction,” said Demers.
It took roughly an hour for the SAR Techs to treat the three casualties. Once they are in the proper conditions, they are extracted by the helicopter.
“It’s always time consuming. You got to assess the casualties properly, make sure you get all of the information you need … and communicate with the helicopter,” said Demers.
The training continues until Friday, February 26th including a mock helicopter crash on Thursday.
Members of the Kamloops Search and Rescue are also involved in the training.
“Training is key. When we do it for real, it’s probably not going to be a nice sunny day, it’s probably going to be raining, at night, and that’s where training becomes the key,” said Demers.
