rescue

I am not the best writer by any means and so I apoligize up front to all those I dedicate this article to. To you the men and women of every rescue organization in the world. Thank you.

Help, get me down off this cliff, I wrecked my car and can't get out, we are sinking, we are on fire, I can't find her, she's lost in the snow, all mean one thing, rescue me.

I was out on the water the other day when a smoke flare dropped in the ocean about a mile behind me. I though perhaps someone was in trouble and turned my boat around to go check it out. Overhead I heard and then saw a huge rescue water plane circling and preparing to land in the ocean and so a cleared the area. This was the second time I had come so close to rescue. The last time I was admiring the view from a beach tower in Australia. I noted that several surf lifesaver vehicles had began to cluster around one spot on the beach. The day was coming to an end and so they all had their lights on and were directing anything that shone into a small patch of water. I called my wife over and explained it looks like someone is in trouble. AS we watched I guess 6 maybe 7 minutes passed and I said to my wife, "These boys are good, if they don't find the person soon we can expect a helicopter to arrive......." I didn't even finish the sentence before the unmistakable throb of helicopter rotors pounded over our room and headed right to the spot of concern. It was pretty much black outside now and so the helicopter switched on a search light and night became day. Man that light just lit up the entire ocean. The swimmer was found and wizzed off I imagine to a nearby emergency room. But I will never forget just how fast these people flew into action. Impressed doesn't quite cover the feeling at all. Where the did they come from and how did they get there so fast!

It seems to me that these days we are asking more and more of our rescue teams around the world. Whenever I meet a person who loves a sport that takes them outside and in dangers path (which most sports do in one way or another) I always am sure to ask, "what will happen if you get in trouble" The answer is pretty much the same each time and has something to do with helicopters and rescue teams. Amazing, how can we be so sure that we will be rescued. I know I feel the same way. Just as I expect water to come out of my taps at home or electricity to spout forth into my vacuum cleaner when I switch it on I expect to be rescued where ever, whenever in whatever conditions I happen to find myself in trouble. We simply expect to be rescued when we are in trouble. Smash the car, an ambulance and police turn up, become stuck on the 13th floor of a building ablaze, the fire rescue will get me out with ladders and men/women, do that again atop a 40 story building and you know the helicopters are on the way, become wedged between a rock and a hard place and someone will turn up with "the jaws of life" and get me out, a whale hits my yacht 40 miles out to sea and I wait till a helicopter whirs overhead and tells me how to get into the basket, find myself lost in the middle of the mountains and then see scrub fire smoke everywhere, set off my 406 MHz Personal epirb and wait for the helicopter to come get me out of there. It is that simple isn't it we expect to be rescued.

As a community we all share this expectation and as a community set about organizing for any rescue event. We lobby our governments to do a lot of the work but we know they can't handle it all so volunteers are called for and you can be sure they answer with hearty voices by the thousands. These volunteer groups dedicate vast quantities of personal time to training and to me it it absolutely amazing to see a man I know as a mild mannered bank officer swing into action hurling out his clear loud voice to shout imperatives to his rescue crew and grab a young child from the clutches of a river running rampant with flood waters. (Wallacia Australia 1967 maybe it was 68) Such people are the real supermen and superwomen of this world.

The cost of these rescues is too much for us as a community to bear. These days the cost of being prepared for any rescue situation is shared between our taxes, private sponsors and individual volunteer wallets and time. Did you know that to have just one of those helicopters search for then stand overhead and send down a basket can cost a twenty to thirty thousand pounds for a quick rescue. This cost is often picked up by governments and of course when they run out of money we have to say thanks to the big corporate sponsors. The helicopter I spoke of in Australia had a bank's name plastered all over it. Westpak was the sponsor of that rescue and we have to say thanks.

Rescue needs come in all forms. Take a few minutes and watch the Youtube I included on a fire rescue. Can you imagine the heat that is being generated by that fire. Knowing what helicopter engines run on one has to ask what kind of guts do these people have. I mean all the training in the world will not prevent a sudden wind sheer pitching that helicopter just a few meters forward and into a massive heat funnel and boom the machine would be gone along with it's crew. Still they hover there giving hope. Eventually the situation is forced and the rescue must go on. They winch the team member in and he lands on the crane. The crowd are seen to clap is if it's all over but not so. At this very moment the helicopter has a wire rope attached to a person who is on a hard surface. If the rescue team member falls and the cable becomes entangled all sorts of trouble will hit that helicopter. Still the rescue goes on a until such time as the rescue team member fixes himself to the victim and they yank him out. This is for anyone watching a very scary situation but somehow I just know the guys on duty just did their job. Incredible.

The gusto of the fire rescue helicopter team is again apparent when we see these guys that drop themselves into raging oceans on the end of a wire and haul people up out of the water. They seem oblivious to wave action that would send shivers up the spine of evn the most experinced pf yachtsmen. Down they go and set the scene for a basket to be lowered and assist the victim/s to safety. Once again all in a days work and once again nothing more than we have all come to expect. I say we all need to say thank you every time we feel that expectation cross our minds. It's real simple and I do it all the time/ "today I am going into the mountains, if I get in trouble they will come get me, Thank you guys" or maybe "this weather is looking a bit rough, should be O.K., my boats is in safe condition, I have all the safety gear on board, I have practiced my Man Overboard Drills, and in the worst case they will come get me, Thank you guys" and of course whenever I see a rescue team I always say hello and in a very big voice "thank you for being there guys" I really mean it and I really do this every time I see a team. Try this yourself and just so long as they are not in the middle of an emergency you may be very surprised to see just how happy THEY are you notice and appreciate them.

Once you start to think about the work these rescue folk do you can't help but become fascinated by the equipment they use. It could be a helicopter and there are as many different set ups as there are jobs to do when it comes to rescue helicopters. On the other hand it may be a special purpose truck or articulated vehicle that suits the need on the day. I have included just a few photos to indicate the vast array of vehicles available to today's rescue workers. I guess my favourite has to be the helicopter as it is by far the most versatile piece of equipment within the rescue industry. The helicopter can be found carrying equipment and fire fighters into fires and injured or stranded people out of fires. The same helicopter may well be found hovering over a flooded river waiting a chance to pluck people from the roof of homes flooded up to the rain gutters and starting to move of their foundations. The very next day this very same machine may be tasked to carry rescue climbers up a mountain and set them down for the start of a search and rescue. Truly amazing machines and we need all be grateful for both the machines and the folk that fly them.

Well I guess most of you by now can see that I am pretty much a fan of the rescue men and woman of this planet we live on. I would be remiss if I didn't spend just a few last lines inviting those of you who are still young enough to consider a career helping others to think about joining a rescue unit. I am pretty sure that anyone of you who look around the net with the intent of joining a rescue team will soon find any number of ways you can contribute to the ever growing web of rescue workers around the world. So why not? Get on the net this very minute and take a look around. I am sure there is a job to suit you.