Air Force teaches adventure students the ropes in emergency response

By Second Lieutenant Alex Munoz

Search and Rescue Technician Sergeant Steeve Bédard descends from the 439 Squadron helicopter to the rescue site.

A call comes in to the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre at 8 Wing Trenton - someone has been injured while hiking in the woods.  Within minutes, a Search and Rescue (SAR) helicopter from 439 Combat Support Squadron at 3 Wing Bagotville takes off.

Meanwhile, the situation on the ground is deteriorating.  A group of university students in outdoor and adventure tourism who happen to be in the area finds one person seriously injured, and another in shock.  The students continue searching for a third victim.

On October 19, 439 (CS) Squadron, together with a member of a ground search team from 3 Wing Bagotville, delivered this scenario as part of an exercise simulating an emergency situation in a remote area.  The purpose of the exercise was for the squadron to share its knowledge with students in the Outdoor and Adventure Tourism program from the University of Quebec at Chicoutimi (UQAC).

"This training allowed us to expose the students to crisis situations that demand an immediate response," said David Mepham, acting director of the Outdoor and Adventure Tourism program at UQAC.  To ensure that the situations are as realistic as possible, some students play the roles of injured people, while others play the rescuers who find them in the woods and have to administer first aid.  The scenarios are designed so that the situation becomes increasingly serious.  The students are told at the outset what task they have to perform, but there are a few surprises lying in wait for them along the way:  a second injured person, another in shock, and lastly, help from 439 (CS) Squadron!

As part of that response, a SAR Technician (SAR Tech) descends from the helicopter with the aid of a hoist and takes control of the situation.  The students then switch roles and carry out rescue manœuvres, focusing on techniques used by military SAR specialists.

The learning objective is to enable the students to acquire the knowledge required in order to execute ground searches and rescues in isolated areas.  Simulations must be realistic and be played out in a controlled environment.  Being able to work with people acting out the roles of the injured individuals, as the situation unfolds in real time, is a great advantage for everyone. 

Members of 439 (CS) Squadron and the students took part in a successful training exercise that gave them the opportunity to demonstrate their numerous skills and work with the next generation of SAR professionals.  As for the students, they achieved their learning objective.  It was a beneficial partnership for everyone involved.

Sgt Bédard calls the helicopter to request a stretcher, as students from the Outdoor and Adventure Tourism at the University of Quebec at Chicoutimi look on.

Sgt Bédard discusses the situation with students from the bachelor's program in Outdoor and Adventure Tourism at the University of Quebec at Chicoutimi.