A first of its kind exercise for Yorkton

Two local rescue organizations conducted a first of its kind event August 16.

The urban rescue training exercise was a collaboration of Parkland Search and Rescue (PSAR) and St. John Ambulance Medical First Responder Team. It took place in the northeast area of the city with simulations that included a search for a lost dementia patient and rescue operation involving multiple casualties with various types of wounds.

Heather Ritchie, president of the Parkland group and a member of the St. John Ambulance team, said the event was excellent.

“It went really well,” she said. “It was a really awesome experience for us.”

A total of 17 volunteers showed up. Some belong to both organizations, which, Ritchie explained, helped with the smoothness of the exercise.

“The team members both worked together seamlessly,” she said.

She attributed much of the success to preparation.

“The training we’ve done really shined through,” she noted.

Among the positives of the event Ritchie listed communication, the reception from the community, success in treating casualties, the operation of their new radio system and the turnout.

Of course, learning is also important. Among the things they need to improve she cited getting better acquainted with their equipment and developing a better command system, for which training has been scheduled.

Having local expertise is critical, Ritchie said.

“In the event of a major emergency or missing person, it sometimes takes hours for additional help to arrive from other locations,” she explained. “Our groups provide local, trained professionals to the area immediately.

Parkland SAR was established in the Spring of 2015 to serve Yorkton, Melville and their surrounding areas. It is one of 18 search and rescue teams across the province and a member organization of Search and Rescue Saskatchewan Association of Volunteers (SARSAV). Members are unpaid professionals trained up to a Canadian Safety Association (CSA) standard and are readily available to be utilized by local RCMP and emergency measures organizations in the event of a community emergency.

St. John Ambulance, which was established in Canada in 1884, is famous as a First Aid training organization and provides numerous other humanitarian services from therapy dogs to disaster planning to medical first response. The local medical first responder group provides services to all kinds of local events such as the fair, drag races and track meets as well as being on call for activation in an emergency.

Both organizations are always looking for additional volunteers, Ritchie said. Interested parties can call 306-783-4544 (St. John) or 306-641-4966 (PSAR) for more information.