# Presentation: 659298

## Introduction to Search Management

- Developed as part of the National Emergency Services Curriculum Project

## Four Factors Making Emergency Response Necessary

- A lag in the alert of mission personnel
- Limit your search area quickly
- The odds of a victim surviving as time goes on
- Size of the search area
- Available information
- Information is fragile

## Matching Response with Need

- Are less than 6 hours of daylight left?
- Is the victim very young or old?
- Does the victim have a known or potential medical problem?
- Is there only one person involved?
- Are weather conditions bad now, or were they when the person, boat or aircraft went missing?

## Matching Response with Need Continued

- Was the victim poorly equipped to handle the environment - including the airworthiness of the aircraft or seaworthiness of the boat?
- Is the subject inexperienced in the environment and/or the local area?
- Are known hazardous conditions in the area?

## Matching Response with Need Continued

- Is the objective missing in an area in which there have been numerous SAR cases?
- Is the individual reasonably overdue, measured by standards normally used to determine that someone is overdue
- Does this search pass the SANITY CHECK?

## SAR Responsibility in the United States

- Navigable Waterways = USCG
- Single State, Land = Local Law Enforcement normally
- Single State, Aircraft = State OEM or designee
- Often CAP is the designee
- Multiple State Searches = AFRCC

## Primary Resources

- Air Force Units
- Coast Guard Units
- Mountain Rescue Association
- Civil Air Patrol
- Explorer SAR Teams
- National Park Service
- ...

## Secondary Resources

- Red Cross
- Salvation Army
- Amateur Radio Emergency Service
- Local Law Enforcement
- Fire Departments
- Military
- ...

##   Search Planning

- Area of Possibility (AOP)
- Last Known Point (LKP)
- Point Last Seen (PLS)
- Probability of Area (POA)
- Probability of Detection (POD)
- Probability of Success (POS)

## Area of Possibility

- How far could the missing person or aircraft gotten from the point last scene using the available information?
- Can be a rather large area
- To many unknowns often make the worst case look real bad

## Last Known Point

- LKP is the last spot at which we can definitely establish the victim’s presence by things like:
- Radio reports
- Telephone calls
- Trail Logs
- Physical information like the victims car or equipment located

## Point Last Seen

- PLS is the spot anyone actually saw (Radar skin paint counts) the missing person/aircraft.  PLS is established by witnesses.

## Probability Of Area

- A mathematical prioritization of search areas by the mission staff.
- Normally follow the Mattson Consensus
- A tool that incorporates the experience of mission staff.
- Basically an educated guess

## Probability Of Detection

- The percentage accuracy of searchers based on historical data.
- Trained searchers should have a higher POD than untrained searchers
- Relevant local data should supersede national historical data
- Searchers try to gain a high POD for a search area before closing a search

## Probability of Success

- POA x POD = POS
- Just a tool, remembering that not only is historical data used, but also the guesses of the mission staff.

## Information Gathering

- Be a good reporter. Answer the following
- Who
- What
- When
- Where
- Why
- How
- Play twenty questions

## How is information Gathered?

- Searching an area
- Clues
- Lack of Clues
- De-briefing crews
- Interviews
- Good press relations

## Processing Information

- Information and Knowledge
-  Paper processing
-  Computer processing
-  Map oriented or Tracking Programs
-  Management Assistance programs
-  Formula or Number Crunching
-  Personnel Tracking & Processing

## 7 Steps to Start a Search

- Start a Log
- Gain Cooperation
- Find out what has been done already
- Get control of the physical facilities
- Start posting information
- Get a grip on Search Strategy
- Plan for staff turnover and future operational periods

## Search Management Tasks

- Every task that a team leader accomplishes can be related to search management.
- Remember that accuracy counts, and nothing found is still information found

## QUESTIONS?