OC SARTU

[What Limits]

Could someone kindly put me in touch with OC SARTU please, I have some questions about search techniques and strategies for missing persons.

[ProfessionalStudent]

Call 01407 762241 and ask for Officer Commanding SARTU.

Genius.

[SAR Bloke]

Or ask your questions here!

[What Limits]

I just know that this is gonna hurt !!

1. What is the most effective visual search technique for a missing person in a rural or urban area?

2. What strategies are used for planning a visual search and how are they adapted for different categories of mispers?

[stbd beam]

1. Leave pub and shout name of mispers.

2. Retrace what would be the least sensible path, ie away from the bright light and behind the nearest gorse bush.

3. Try the nearest kebab shop.

4. Can you hear any commotion locally / blue flashing lights?

5. Go back inside pub and purchase another pint .............

................ it could be worse - it could be you!!

[JTIDS]

1. Most effective way to search for a person in an urban area is to get lots of police, MRT, and any one else you can find on foot going through the land.

2. A huge question, and one which would be better answered by talking to a police missing person unit. (Most constabularies have a specialist officer who deals with missing persons) They can give you lots of handy hints such as for example the fact most people head down hill when lost, the very old and very young however tend to head up hill.

From my experience how you search an area depends on whats available, what time it is, local area knowledge and common sense.

And yes quite a few of the people I've been sent out to search for have eventually been found in pubs!

[SAR Bloke]

Search techniques vary according to who you are looking for. A significant proportion of people 'missing' have some form of mental difficulty (frequently suicidal). In this case statistics are a fairly good guide to likely search areas. Police information also helps hugely, a large number of 'missing' people have gone missing before and you may have an idea where they are likely to be.

Searching in an urban area is very difficult (lots of people, lots of obstacles to avoid, lots of cover). The large number of people in the area means that, generally, people are not 'lost' for too long.

People that are mentally sound fall into two categories, those that are lost and those that are injured/incapacitated. The first category is, generally, easier as they want to be found and quite often make themselves seen fairly well (by waving etc). Hand held GPS and experienced local MRT members also mean that accurate positions are not uncommon. The second category is exceptionally difficult. The vast majority of searches in this category are planned 'on the hoof' with a little guesswork involved (land based teams can use statistical probabilities to improve chance of detection - air units can also do this but, in my experience, it is too time consuming and the time is better spent out looking).

In all this I have used lots of words like 'generally' and 'often' because it is not an exact science and people turn up in the strangest of places.


Add to this, the RAF also has the addition of FLIR and TV which adds to the confusion. Should the search be conducted visually at low level or in the hover at 1000' using the camera? Does this change if the person is suicidal (the noise can sometimes be a deciding factor). What about at night? Is it best to use FLIR or NVG?

There are loads more factors that affect a search including weather/equipment that the casualty has/experience etc.

So many decisions, so little time!!

[Bertie Thruster]

Found the following memo in my old RAFSAR "Blue Brain". I can't remember who gave it to me, it's at least 10 years old (and hence a little dated, "PC" wise, for which I apologise) and there are no attached references.
I have used the memo a couple of times since for informing misper searches. I've also applied visual sea search techniques and sweep width probabilities to several open (moor land) searches, in order to give the "customer" a success rate figure to quote.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
By analyzing the behaviour of people who have gone missing in the past, it may be possible to ‘predict’ what the present missing person may do or where they may travel.
General factors that are important in predicting the behaviour of missing persons:
• Biological cycles
• General state of heath and fitness
• Past experience
• Physiological effects of the weather
Behaviour Traits of Lost Persons by specific categories:
• Children 1-3 years
Unaware of the concept of being lost. With little or no navigational sense. They will wander aimlessly. They frequently seek out a place to lie down and go to sleep. (Under a bush, in old sheds or discarded fridges).
• Children 3-6
More mobile and can travel further. They do have the sense of being lost and will try to return to someplace that is or appears to be familiar. They may be attracted by certain features such as animals or particular activities (railways, boats etc). They may seek out shelter to rest or sleep. They may have been instructed to not talk to or respond to strangers.
• Children 6-12
Fairly well developed navigational ability. Will general orientate themselves to familiar surroundings. Will be confused by a strange environment. Will intentionally run away following arguments, will often refuse to respond to searches. However darkness will bring about a greater willingness to be found. They will often become lost having been ‘transplanted’ into a strange environment (on holiday).
• People with ‘special needs’ (mental needs).
Act and react similar to children 6-12. Will generally not respond to searchers. Will frequently be hidden from sight through fright or seeking shelter. Will usually stay in the same place for days. Will do little to help themselves.
• Depressed People
Will seek solitude, often within sight and sound of some form of civilization and frequently near some prominent location (beauty spot, waterside, viewpoint).
• Alzheimer Sufferers
They will have poor memory of recent events and tend to orientate themselves to past locations. They lose their reasoning ability and become confused by changes in the environment. (A frequent manifestation is that they will walk into a bush or a thicket and are unable to solve their predicament, pushing themselves deeper into the bush).
• Dyslexia
People who have dyslexia may lose their ability to orientate themselves ‘spatially’ (confusing uphill and downhill). They have difficulty in recalling the correct sequence of events and could become confused when trying to retrace their route on a path.
• Walkers (little or no experience)
Will usually rely on marked trails and can be confused by changes in the terrain (eroded paths, multiple path junctions). Mistakes occur when shortcuts are attempted. Mismatched parties can result in one member being left behind.
• Backpackers, climbers (more experienced in a variety of terrain).
Tend to be well equipped. Weather conditions or accidents lead to these people being lost. They will normally stay close to their designated routes.
Previously recorded data allows for a ‘probability zone’ (miles travelled from Point Last Seen) to be established:
Distance from the Point Last Seen (in miles)
Hilly terrain.
Child 1-6 yrs. 89% found between 2.6 miles below to 1.6 above
Child 6-12 yrs. 92% found between 4.1 miles below to 2.6 above
Elderly. 90% found between 3.0 miles below to 1.0 above
Walkers. 83% found between 6.0 miles below to 4.0 above
Flat terrain
Child 1-6 yrs. 92% within 2.2 miles
Child 6-12 yrs. 92% within 3.0 miles
Elderly. 93% within 3.0 miles
Walkers. 94% within 4.0 miles

[What Limits]

Thanks Bertie, now we are getting to the good stuff !

[geniculate]

Many moons agon while on an MRT, we were called to search for a lady in her eighties and was suffering from dementia. She was was last seen walking up a hill in the middle of Scotland several hours before.
We started a search in the mid evening along with some local MRT's, search dogs and the Gannet Sea King. The search was called off when the police found her sipping tea in a cafe over the other side of the hill and some 10 miles on!

You might like to try one of the RAF or local MRT's. My memory is a little hazy, but there is a search managers course that is open to civ and mil teams alike that teaches search techniques of the like that Bertie is mentioning. As some of the other posters have said, it's not straightforward!