*About PDF Documents

SAR NEW INITIATIVES FUND

Evaluating technology, human factors and training elements for life raft use
When ship or oil-platform evacuation is necessary, life rafts are used as either a primary or secondary means of evacuation. But are these life rafts living up to their prescribed performance? And how do weather conditions affect the life raft's performance?

The Canadian Coast Guard has launched a research project to assess life raft operational performance in terms of technical capabilities in a wide range of weather conditions.

Funded by the New Search and Rescue Initiatives Fund, the three-year project will help researchers find the quantitative information necessary to measure life raft performance. Currently, not much is known about how life rafts perform as the weather deteriorates, the physical and cognitive demands upon personnel operating the life raft, or the competencies required and necessary training to be developed.

Both model and full-scale trials will be performed to determine the technical performance of the life rafts during inclement weather. The results of these model performance trials, and human factor assessments made throughout, will allow for a practical critique of current training standards for life raft use.

With the increased practical knowledge gained through this project, casualty survival time will be increased and the risk to search and rescue personnel will be reduced. It will improve the safety of personnel work on, or travel by, sea.
DFO 12/04

Update: Preparing for tsunamis in the Pacific region
In 2001, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans began researching the possible effects of a tsunami on the West Coast.

This project was funded by the New Search and Rescue Initiatives Fund to provide information to British Columbia's marine and search and rescue communities of expected tsunami heights, arrival times and currents along coastal waters through detailed, high-resolution bathymetric data* to provide accurate simulations of currents in vulnerable areas.

In light of the 2004 tsunami in Asia, this project is timely. When the project was proposed, there was no reliable information on the effects of a Cascadia Subduction Zone tsunami on the coastal communities in southern and western Vancouver Island.

It is expected this zone will generate a severe earthquake and tsunami in the next few hundred years and it is necessary to develop plans and evacuation routes for mariners and others living in coastal towns. An earthquake registering a seven or eight on the Richter scale can cause a tsunami with a height of five metres or more.

According to recent project reports, excellent results have been achieved from the modeling efforts to date, with a summary of results and recommendations for use by search and rescue managers and responders in the months to come.

More information about this project is available in SARSCENE Magazine, Volume 13, #2.

*Bathymetry is the measurement of water depth at various places in a body of water.
DFO 3/01

Rimouski's Quick and Efficient Response Unit
With the vast and rugged terrain of Rimouski, Quebec, search and rescue is not an easy task.

Designated as "Region 1" by the Sûreté du Québec, the area between the lower St. Lawrence/Gaspésie and Iles de la Madeleine covers more than 22,000 square kilometres and has a population of more than 200,000.

Noticing there was a shortage of well-trained search and rescue volunteers, as well as equipment, the Sûreté du Québec knew something had to be done to provide an effective search and rescue service in the area.

Their solution was the Quick and Efficient Response Unit project, funded by the New Search and Rescue Initiatives Fund.

This one-year project is designed to provide search and rescue volunteers with the necessary basic equipment and training to improve their search and rescue capabilities.

After evaluating all the needs, the solution was to build a light, well-equipped truck that is ready no matter what the season and can be driven on all kinds of roads and trails to ensure a fast and efficient response. The truck will have the required logistical support, will serve as a command post and could later be available for team training.
QC 1/04

New public education program launched in B.C.
In the last two years, the number of search and rescue incidents in British Columbia has increased 25 per cent.

With a comprehensive and focused education program, the AdventureSmart project is designed to reduce the number and severity of these incidents.

Funded by the New Search and Rescue Initiatives Fund, in partnership with B.C. Provincial Emergency Program, AdventureSmart is a public education program that has been created to provide knowledge and understanding concerning the risks associated with outdoor recreational activities.

Limited education and awareness programs are currently being delivered to a small segment of the B.C. community, but do not have enough resources. AdventureSmart will act as the B.C.-wide banner to co-ordinate a more effective program.

There are eight core programs under the AdventureSmart banner, including:

• YouthSafe: risk management for school outdoor programs for kindergarten to grade 12
• Hug-a-Tree and Survive: outdoor survival strategies for grades four and five
• Mountain Safety/Winter Programs: grades seven to 12
• AdventureSmart Youth Teams: extension and delivery of key messages through participation in outdoor sporting activities and events
• Risk Management for Outdoor Programs: education programs designed for post-secondary age groups
• Avalanche Safety: awareness programs in conjunction with the Canadian Avalanche Association
• Seasonal Safety Programs: public presentations focusing on boating safety, river safety and other seasonal activities
• AdventureSmart Outdoor Safety Materials: to support local initiatives and provide broad public awareness

The focus of AdventureSmart is to provide increased knowledge and awareness to outdoor recreationists and assist in their making wise choices to reduce the chances of becoming lost or injured when participating in outdoor activities.
BC 11/04

Distance learning for SAR managers
Evolving techniques and new strategies and tactics, make it is necessary for search and rescue managers and commanders to ensure their knowledge and practices are kept up-to-date. But this is not always easy to do because of the significant commitment of time needed to take five-day courses to ensure qualifications are current.

The RCMP, in partnership with the Justice Institute of B.C., has developed an innovative distance learning package on CD-ROM to teach advanced search management skills. Funded by the New Search and Rescue Initiatives Fund, the training package serves as both training for SAR managers to remain current, as well as a training module for police officers for the role of SAR Manager or SAR Commander.

This package makes training more accessible because it can be done from any computer at the individual's pace - and it can be reviewed regularly.

The training will be based on, and will enhance, the existing SAR Commander awareness training already delivered to B.C. police constables through the Justice Institute of B.C.
RCMP 1/04

Risk assessment for recreational boating
To develop better prevention programs for boating safety, researchers have investigated factors associated with recreational boating, including demographics, personal flotation device use and alcohol consumption.

But little research has been done on the patterns of recreational boating in Canada. To assist in search and rescue planning and develop prevention programs, the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) has identified a need to know more about patterns, such as; frequency, location and type of activity.

The Marine Activity and Risk Investigation Network (MARIN) Research Group at Dalhousie University has developed a location-based risk analysis study that will provide important information to assist with prevention strategies for recreational boating.

Funded by the New Search and Rescue Initiatives Fund and sponsored by the CCG, this three-year project will determine boating traffic characteristics and traffic patterns, determine nationwide recreational boating patterns and characteristics, determine the significant risk factors associated with recreational boating, and develop an effective way to communicate the results in plain language to increase the effectiveness of prevention programs.

The CCG uses significant resources when responding to search and rescue cases involving recreational boats, therefore having traffic models and associated risk measures will result in a more efficient distribution of response resources and better prevention programs.
DFO 7/03

More information about the New SAR Initiatives Fund

Back to Table of Contents