training standards for civilian canine, ground, and search

Training Standards for Civilian Canine, Ground, and SearchManagement SAR Teams.

Michigan Professional Search and Rescue Council Final Revision May 23, 2018 Page 1

MICHIGAN PROFESSIONAL SEARCH AND RESCUE COUNCIL

This document is the recommended Michigan training standards for civilian search and rescue teams as established by the Council members from the Michigan Professional Search and Rescue Council under the direction of the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police and the Michigan Sheriff’s Association. The standards are voluntary and no one team has to meet them. A website is in development and once developed, a roster of teams that meet the standards will be made available for law enforcement agencies to call on should the need arise. This document and, eventually, the website does not prohibit a law enforcement agency from calling on a team that does not meet the standards.

MISSION STATEMENT: The mission of the Michigan Professional Search and Rescue (SAR) Council is to provide the state with a recommended standardization program for civilian dedicated Search and/or Rescue trained teams. The goal is to ensure Michigan Law Enforcement agencies that teams meet the standardization criteria and maintain high quality training to create proficient and professional search teams.

HISTORY: In 2015 the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police and the Michigan Sheriff’s Association were approached by a representative from a civilian canine search and rescue organization advocating for the state to establish training standards for civilian canine search and rescue teams. Michigan currently has several civilian SAR teams throughout the state that are comprised of canine teams, ground teams and search management teams that are underutilized by law enforcement agencies. Why? There may be several reasons why and whatever those reasons are, it is time that agencies start utilizing the services that these teams can provide.

In 2016, a Law Enforcement Committee was formed to begin looking into what these standards should be. The committee is comprised of representatives from the Michigan Chiefs of Police, and the Michigan Sheriff’s Association. This document establishes the minimum training standards recommended by this committee for civilian SAR teams.


Questions arose when the Law Enforcement Committee met which had to be resolved. Some of those questions were, what will the training standards consist of? Once established, how will the standards be enforced? Who will be the certifying agency? The Committee quickly recognized that, because of staffing issues, it would be difficult for law enforcement agencies to be responsible for training and certifying the teams. The Committee knew of several national and international organizations who currently offer these services. The Committee decided that the training and certifying standards of these organizations should be evaluated and, if acceptable, adopted for use in Michigan. In April of 2017, the LE Committee met with over 30 individuals representing SAR teams throughout the state. This was the first time in several years that these teams came together for a common goal - to develop training standards for civilian SAR teams in Michigan. From this meeting subcommittees were established to look into and evaluate national organizations that have training and evaluation standards for canine, ground and search management SAR teams. The teams met again in July and October of 2017 and adopted several training standards for civilian SAR teams as well as selected the name of “Michigan Professional Search and Rescue Council” as its official name. The Council operates under the direction of the Law Enforcement Committee. The following are the Search and Rescue Standards as approved by the Council. This document contains three sections:

• General Requirements – Teams, Team Members and Individuals/Independent Searchers • Canine Standards • Search and Rescue Management

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS – TEAMS, TEAM MEMBERS AND INDIVIDUAL/INDEPENDENT SEARCHERS: Definitions: The following are definitions of terms used in this document.

• Team: Organization consisting of trained members who use SAR tactics and strategies to search for missing persons, clues and/or evidence. A Team may consist of Ground Searchers, Canine Teams, and/or Search Managers, as well as other support personnel.

• Canine Team: A Canine Team consists of a canine handler who utilizes a specially-trained canine to search for missing persons, clues and/or evidence.

• Individual/Independent Searcher: Person who is a trained searcher (Ground and/or Canine) who wishes to be listed individually on the State SAR Roster.


• State SAR Roster: The list of SAR Teams, Individual/Independent Searchers and SAR Managers who meet the requirements of the Michigan Professional Search and Rescue Council, as set out in this document.

• Field-Deployable: Any Team Member, Individual/Independent Searcher, or Canine Team who may be deployed in the field at a search.

General Requirements: Policies, Procedures and Best Practices: Teams and Individual/Independent Searchers shall meet the following requirements to qualify for listing on the State SAR Roster.

1. SAR Knowledge and Skills: All personnel are expected to maintain an appropriate level of SAR core competency relevant to their area of SAR expertise or responsibility. At least 60% of all Field-Deployable Team personnel shall be certified as SARTECH II through the National Association of Search and Rescue (NASAR). All individual/independent searchers shall obtain a SARTECH II certification. Recertification with NASAR is not a requirement. Mountain Rescue Association “MRA 105 Operations Level” certification will be considered equivalent to the NASAR SARTECH II certification.

2. Background Checks – Teams shall conduct background checks of all members and maintain the documentation. Individual/Independent Searchers must maintain records of a background check.

3. Media Relations Policy – Each Team and Individual/Independent Searcher will maintain

a media policy.

4. Training Documentation – Teams and Individual/Independent Searchers must maintain training documentation for all members/individuals, subjects and skills, and these must be made available for inspection upon request.

5. Incident Command System – The Incident Command System and ICS documentation

should be utilized at all times in all operational environments. Teams and Individual/Independent Searchers must provide/obtain training on the use of ICS forms relevant to their operations. Documents should be maintained for at least one year.

6. Communication – All Teams and Individual/Independent Searchers will provide/obtain

radio communication training in the International Radio Communication Standard.

7. No Self Deployment – Teams and Individual/Independent Searchers listed on the State SAR Roster should not self-deploy. Any deployments must be authorized by a law enforcement agency or the agency with authority for the site/scene.


8. Law Enforcement Authority – Teams and Individual/Independent Searchers must agree to work under the authority of the law enforcement agency that is assigned as incident command for the incident. If the law enforcement agency delegates any responsibility to another agency, the teams/individuals must agree to work under any delegated authority.

9. Team Leaders – All Teams listed on the roster should have higher training and

performance standards for the team leaders. This higher level of training and performance will be documented.

10. Coordinate Systems – The United States National Grid (USNG) coordinate system and

WGS-84 datum will be the defaults used on search incidents. Teams and Individual/Independent Searchers should be capable of using USNG, along with the following coordinate systems – Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) and Latitude/Longitude (Lat/Long). Federal responses under FEMA authority require USNG. Most SAR teams nationwide use UTM. Aviation, Marine and many local agencies (including civilian) use Lat/Long. Teams should be able to adapt their operations accordingly.

11. Spontaneous Volunteers – Teams and Individual/Independent Searchers should

discourage the use of untrained personnel. Untrained personnel or other resources should only be invited and used under the direction of the agency with authority for the site/scene.

12. Policies and Procedures for personnel – Teams and Individual/Independent Searchers should maintain policies and procedures pertaining to personnel, as follows: • Disciplinary procedures for failing to act in a professional manner • Procedures addressing the use of illicit substances or alcohol • Procedures for removing/suspending a person from field operations • Policies on prohibiting the carrying, or use of, firearms • Travel to search procedures • On-scene arrival procedures including sign in • Procedures that establish group appointment of an on-scene agency representative • Safety related policies

13. Age – Personnel who perform field operations should be at least 18 years old.

14. Briefing and Debriefing – Teams and Individual/Independent Searchers should have standard policies for performing, participating in or including other teams and individuals in Briefings and Debriefings.


Personnel Requirements: All Team Members and Individual/Independent Searchers shall maintain the following minimum training/certifications in order to be Field-Deployable.

1. SAR Technical Skills – SAR core competency and/or SARTECH II Certification as outlined in General Requirement #1

2. Current CPR and Basic First Aid Certification. 3. ICS Certifications (IS-100, IS-200, IS-700 & IS-800) 4. Blood Borne Pathogens - OSHA Approved Certification 5. Crime Scene Awareness - Training Course Certification 6. Land Navigation – Training Course Certification or SARTECH II Certification 7. Hazmat Awareness - OSHA Approved Certification

Canine Handler Requirements: In addition to The Member/Individual Requirements, above, Field-Deployable Canine Handler requirements include the following.

1. K9 Training Logs – Handlers must maintain training logs for all canine training 2. K-9 First Aid – Training Course Certification

Implementation:

1. Implementation Timeframe – Teams, Team Members and Individual/Independent Searchers will have 18 months from implementation to achieve full compliance with the standard.

2. Implementation Transition Period – During the implementation, any Team or Individual/Independent Searcher not meeting the requirements may be listed on the State SAR Roster with a letter of reference and good standing from an Authority Having Jurisdiction. The recommendation shall be by a Sheriff, Chief, or acceptable position as determined by the Law Enforcement Committee. This would allow the law enforcement agencies an immediate pool of resources. These resources would not be fully compliant with the standards but would be “working toward” the standard. At the conclusion of the timeframe a Team or Individual/Independent Searcher would have to meet the standards to remain on the Roster.

3. Personnel-in-Training – Following the implementation timeframe Team Members or

Individual/Independent Searchers who do not meet all personnel requirements, will not be field-deployable.


CANINE STANDARDS: General Requirements for all Disciplines: In order to deploy in the field, Canine Teams must obtain and maintain certification from one of the independent testing organizations listed below. Evaluators for this testing must be from outside of the handler’s Team or training group. The following are the minimum criteria, and acceptable testing organizations for each of the canine disciplines. Note that any canine that completes a certification test that doesn’t include an obedience component will be required to obtain an AKC Canine Good Citizen (CGC) certification or equivalent. Human Remains Detection (HRD): Certification test must have 2 or more sectors with a possibility of high, surface or buried sources, and the possibility of a negative sector. The test must allow no false indications and a maximum of 1 missed source (source not located).

1. AMPWDA – Land 2. IDHS – Land Cadaver 3. IPWDA – Crime Scene 4. NAPCH – Land 5. NASAR – Type Other, Type IV or Type III 6. NNCDS – Land 7. NSDA – Land 8. SDONA – Human Remains Operational Readiness Test

Area/Wilderness/Airscent Search - Non-Scent Specific: Certification test must have a sector size of a minimum of 80 acres, and the possibility of more than one subject/source.

1. AMPWDA – Advance (Level 3) 2. IPWDA – 160 Acres 3. NASAR – SARTECH I Area 4. NSDA – Area I Field Test, Area II Field Test or Live Subject & Large Source Cadaver 5. SARDUS – Live Area 120 Acres with 30 Acres Night (Also requires CGC or equivalent

certification) 6. SDONA – Area Operational Readiness Test

Area/Wilderness/Airscent Search - Scent Discriminating Specific: Certification test must have a sector size of a minimum of 60 acres and one subject along with decoy subjects in the sector.

1. NASAR – SARTECH T II Area Discriminating 2. NSDA – Scent Discriminating Field Test

Disaster Live and Recovery: Type I and Type II disaster testing will be accepted. No dual Live and Recovery Find will be allowed.

1. IRO – RHT-T-A Rubble or RHT-T-B Rubble 2. NASAR – Live Type II or Human Remains Type A


3. SDONA – Operational Readiness Test Disaster Live or Operational Readiness Test Disaster Human Remains.

4. SUSAR – Live Type I or HRD 5. US&R Response System / FEMA –Certification Evaluation (CE) – Live Find or Certification

Evaluation (CE) – Human Remains Find

Trailing: Certification test must have a trail length of at least 1 mile and age of trail at least 12 hours.

1. AMPWDA – Master Level 4 (Also requires CGC or equivalent certification) 2. NASAR – SARTECH I 3. NNCDS – Advance 4. NSDA–Trailing Test I Wilderness Field 5. NSK9TA – Certification (recertification requires full 24-hour seminar and double-blind

test; also requires CGC or equivalent certification) 6. SARDUS – Wilderness and Type I (Also requires CGC or equivalent certification) Water Recovery: There are no criteria for water testing due to the fact that water recovery testing is very subjective and variable. In addition, access to water testing is difficult. A Canine Team who deploys on water searches should consistently train on water and obtain a water recovery certification through any reputable national organization. Implementation strategy/timeline for Canine certifications: Requirement for national certification of Canine Teams takes full effect 18 months after implementation of the State Standards. During this time, canines are Field-Deployable as follows:

• At the time the State Standards implement, a Canine Team that is operating as “mission ready” based on in-team (or other) testing that meets or exceeds the criteria set for the State Standards may continue to deploy without State-accepted national certification. This Canine Team must obtain a State-accepted national certification within 18 months after implementation to remain Field-Deployable.

• At the time the State Standards implement, a Canine Team that is operating as “mission ready” based on any test that does not meet the criteria set for the State Standards must obtain a State-accepted national certification, or must pass in-team testing that meets or exceeds the criteria for the State Standards within 6 months to remain Field-Deployable. If in-team testing is used, this Canine Team must obtain a State-accepted national certification within 18 months after implementation to remain Field-Deployable.

• During the 18 month implementation period, recertification of a mission ready Canine

Team may be conducted by in-team testing that meets or exceeds the criteria set for the State Standards.


• A Canine Team that is not operating as “mission ready” at the time the State Standards implement must obtain a State-accepted national certification to be considered Field-Deployable.

Both during and after implementation, if a Canine Team fails to pass a certification test, or if the Team’s certification expires (whether a national or in-team certification), that Canine Team will not be considered Field-Deployable. After the 18 month implementation period has passed, a State-accepted national certification will be required for any Canine Team to be considered Field-Deployable.

SEARCH AND RESCUE MANAGEMENT:

Purpose: This list of criteria will outline the requirements for a SAR team to be listed as a SARM resource on the Michigan SAR resource list. SARM is considered an optional resource from Ground and/or Canine resources. Minimum Criteria to be listed on the state’s SARM resource list: A Team should have at least one member who meets the following requirements to be listed on the State Roster as a Search and Rescue Management resource. An Individual/Independent Searcher should meet the following requirements to be listed.

• Meets all requirements under GENERAL REQUIREMENTS – TEAMS, TEAM MEMBERS AND INDIVIDUAL/INDEPENDENT SEARCHERS

• ICS-300 and ICS-400 certification

• SARM Training course (at least one): o Illinois SAR Council’s Search Management (course number G679 o National Search and Rescues Association’s (NASAR) Managing the Lost Person

Incident (MPLI) o Emergency Response International (ERI) Managing Land Search Operations (MLSO)

Basic. o National Park Service Search and Rescue Management Class o Indiana Department of Homeland Security SAR250 Search and Rescue Management o Virginia Department of Emergency Management S141 SAR management Skills for

the First Responder o Air Force Rescue Coordination Center’s Basic Inland Search and Rescue Course (BISC) o Arizona Inland Search Management Course.


Implementation Transition Period: During the 18-month implementation, any SARM-trained Individual/Independent Searcher or Team with a SARM-trained member not meeting the requirements may be listed on the State SAR Roster with a letter of recommendation from an Authority Having Jurisdiction stating that the person is trained and experienced in search and rescue management. The recommendation shall be by a Sheriff, Chief, , or acceptable position as determined by the Law Enforcement Committee. This would allow the law enforcement agencies an immediate pool of resources. These resources would not be fully compliant with the standards but would be “working toward” the standard. At the conclusion of the transition period a Team or Individual/Independent Searcher would have to meet the SARM standards to remain on the Roster as a SARM resource.

Roster Listing: The enrollment period will remain open-ended. When a team has a person who meets the above requirements the team’s name will be added as having a Search and Rescue Manager. If a listed team no longer has a member who meets the SARM requirements the team will notify the SARM list administrator and have its name removed until they meet the requirements.

Recommend Preferred Experience: Although a SARM course is required, additional training and experience is highly recommended. Further items include:

• Knowledge in deploying various resources (including any limitations): o Ground teams o K9 teams (including each K9 discipline; Area search, trailing, human remains

detection, disaster) o Horse teams o Aviation based tools (helicopters, air planes, drones, etc.) o Vehicle, ground-based tools (quads, bicycles, trucks) o Dive Teams

• Understanding of lost person behavior and proper application of it

• Experience in working under a SARM mentor


REVISION SUMMARIES AND DATES: • Original Final Version Approved May 23, 2018