Whether it is a BASE jumper hanging precariously from his chute in the middle of a 500-foot Wingate cliff, an injured climber at the top of a steep and rocky talus slope, a rimmed-out hiker in a remote canyon, or a dog stranded in a deep pothole, Grand County Search and Rescue is ready to respond with its Technical Rock Rescue team. While GCSAR trains all its members to an Awareness Level in Technical Rock Rescue, we also maintain a core group of about a dozen dedicated individuals who train extensively for the varied technical rescue situations that occur frequently in Grand County.
In conjunction with the National Park Service, GCSAR co-hosts an annual Advanced Technical Rope Rescue course open to all SAR groups in Utah. NPS and GCSAR rescue personnel work closely together throughout the entire year. If GCSAR needs help with an incident, NPS personnel are available to assist…and vice versa. Technical Rescue is just one of several areas of mutual aid between the two agencies.
To facilitate training the Technical Rope Rescue Team, a training tower was recently built behind Grand County’s Emergency Operations Center. The 24-foot-high tower features several walls that can be used for various types of simulated rescue activities.
Since Technical Rope Rescue requires immediate availability of a considerable amount of specialized equipment, GCSAR maintains a trailer dedicated to rock rescue. The trailer can be hooked to one of the GCSAR vehicles and be on the road within a matter of minutes after the pagers are triggered. Each of GCSAR’s Polaris Rangers also carries a basic Technical Rescue Kit.
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