Search, first aid and evacuation of the injured 1 from inside the gold mine, exit with the Tyrolean railway dog, aid to the injured animal – these are any of the tasks that have been faced by the participants of the SAR Challenge competition for search and rescue groups with service dogs in the Golden Stok in Lower Silesia. Territorials from 12 Wielkopolska BOT with Misty's bitch took second place.
WOT soldiers in advancement SAR Challenge
The competitions of search and rescue groups with SAR Challenge dogs in Golden Stok in Sudetes were held for the first time. It was organized by Tomasz Stępień, retired police officer, erstwhile commander of police unit K9 and owner of task K9 MED, offering training in helping people and dogs (those serving in rescue groups and belonging to private individuals) aimed at both uniformed services in Poland and abroad as well as civilians. – We have noticed that there is simply a deficiency of strict competition for search and rescue groups with dogsThat's the thought for this competition. The programme is full adapted to the circumstantial nature of the activities of specified teams, and corresponds to their work – the organiser explains.
Required tasks
Six double teams (guide and navigator) with dogs – mostly representatives of the Volunteer Fire Service, but besides territorials from Poznań with a brigade servant for respective months Misty – a border collie female race.
The competition took place in the difficult, mountainous area of the east Sudetes and in the interiors of the gold mine in Golden Stok, whose corridors scope as much as 130 m underground. It is simply a popular tourist attraction, but during the weekend competition any of the trails were separated only for the participants of the competition, so that tourists and rescuers do not get in the way.
WOT soldiers in advancement SAR Challenge
The contestants were faced with 7 tasks: interviewing the parents (or, in fact, the pretenders who embodyed them) of the missing individual in specified a way as to get valuable information for conducting search and rescue operations, providing assistance to the service dog injured during the operation in the mine, searching with the four-legged missing individual in the mine and providing her with qualified first aid, beating a line bridge with a dog attached to a harness and towed on a rope, helping a individual with many injuries in the mine, and crossing the obstacle track.
Misty for a medal
The members of the rescue squad from the peculiar Rescue Unit of OS in Skarbimierz and the Rescue and Firefighting Unit in Kędzierzyn-Koźl came out of the SAR Challenge in Golden Stok. Territorials from Poznań won second place, which – as they emphasize themselves – is simply a large discrimination for them, the rescue group K9 in 12 Wielkopolska BOT It has only been in operation for a year, and the 5 - year - old Misty has served in the brigade only since April. – Our K9 group has been operating late and soldiers competed with experienced teams. Therefore, we are very pleased with the results, happy that the squad finished second – noted Captain Anna Jasińska-Pawlikowska, press officer of the 12th Wielkopolska Territorial Defence Brigade.
WOT soldiers in advancement SAR Challenge
The SAR Challenge participants were expected to pass most of the tasks in 20 minutes, but the competition did not number as much velocity as the quality of the assistance. The following steps were followed by judges who awarded points for each task. – Not everyone realises that, just as there are certain requirements concerning the procedure of helping people, the same applies to injured animals, so considering this task, where all crew's dog was playing the function of an injured four-legged, we were judged for maintaining procedures, comprehensive help, the ability to control the dog, etc. Fortunately, we and Misty did well in the function of a pretender, as stressed by Mr Elżbieta, who is the guide in the search and rescue squad and privately owned bitch.
Face emotion
She besides perfectly managed to track the injured individual in the mined corridors. 1 of the most exhausting tasks that the lifeguards faced was, in turn, to pull out of the rubble in the interior of the injured 80-kilogram man (whose function was "replayed" by the mannequin) and then to transport him on a stretcher to the top, but Archbishop Elżbieta points out that this was not the most hard task. – Talking to people who performed the roles of the parent and father of the missing girl was a real nightmare! – admits the lifeguard. “They played well people in utmost situations, who can’t cope with emotions, do not control aggression, and in addition, it was a matrimony quarrelled with each other, blaming each other. Talking to them, so as to draw useful information, proved to be the actual way through torment. There was quite a few emotion, verbal aggression on their part – says the guide from the 12th OT Brigade.
Yes, I do. This task proved to be a real challenge for the teams who stood for the competition. We have engaged ex-police psychologists and negotiators, i.e. people who have dealt with specified situations, and they have truly prepared hell for our participants. And getting information from them was crucial, due to the fact that the search for the missing individual was based on this – emphasises Tomasz Stępień, the organizer of the competition.
The next year's SAR Challenge competition in Golden Stok will have an extended formula. They will last longer – 3 days, the first of which will be devoted to workshops and lectures.
