Ground Search Unit

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=183 BGCOLOR="#FFCC80" TEXT="#080000"> <bR> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Polk County Sheriffs Office"><U><B><IMG SRC="cb7906e0.gif" border=0 width="144" height="110" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Polk County Sheriffs Office"><U><B>HOME PAGE</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id174.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Inmates In Custody"><U><B>Inmates In Custody</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id196.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Victim Notification"><U><B>Victim Notification - VINE</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id265.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Press Releases"><U><B>Press Releases</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id307.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Employment"><U><B>Employment</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id198.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Patrol Home Page"><U><B>Patrol Division</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id177.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Polk County Sheriffs Office Main Jail Ho"><U><B>Jail Division</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id199.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Records Division"><U><B>Records Division</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id267.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Emergency Management"><U><B>Emergency Mgt</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id221.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Civil"><U><B>Civil</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id37.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="PCSO DOG CONTROL"><U><B>Dog Control</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.grandronde.org" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.grandronde.org"><U><B>Grand Ronde Station</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id114.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Concealed Handgun License"><U><B>Concealed Handgun </B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id163.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="PCSO Forestry"><U><B>Forestry Patrol</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id34.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="MARINE"><U><B>Marine Patrol</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id69.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="PCSO RESERVE PROGRAMS"><U><B>Reserves</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id263.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="SEARCH RESCUE"><U><B>Search & Rescue</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id262.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="PCSO POSSE"><U><B>Mounted Posse</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id250.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Ground Search Unit"><U><B>Ground Search Unit</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id261.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="S.A.L.T."><U><B>S.A.L.T.</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id71.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="CADETS"><U><B>Cadets</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.open.org/~zalearch/plkares.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.open.org/~zalearch/plkares.ht"><U><B>A.R.E.S.</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.co.polk.or.us" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.co.polk.or.us"><U><B>Polk County Web Site</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id115.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="County Directory"><U><B>County Directory</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id160.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Awards"><U><B>Web Site Awards</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id171.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="ESD"><U><B>E.S.D. Report </B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id20.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="LINKS"><U><B>Links</B></U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#000000" TEXT="#F7F7FF" bgproperties="fixed" background="cad00c82dvldtc.jpg"> <div> P.C.S.O.</div> <div> Ground Search Unit</div> <div> <B>"So</B><B> That Ot</B><B>hers May Survive"</B></div> <bR> <div> The Polk County Ground Search Unit (GSU) is an all-volunteer nonprofit unit associated with the Sheriff's Office.  The GSU is the primary unit in the Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue (SAR) team.  Our members are dedicated and committed to the SAR effort.</div> <bR> <div> All of our members are Oregon State certified for Search and Rescue.<FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Times" >  </FONT>We search for all kinds of people in all kinds of situations: downed aircraft, lost mushroom pickers, missing hikers, hunters, children, Alzheimer's patients, suicide victims, body recoveries, and more. We also do evidence searches, including those for human remains.  We train and search both day and night in all types of weather, temperatures, and terrain.  In addition to field operations and logistics, we also run base camp and SAR communications operations.</div> <bR> <div> Our members are trained in Search and Rescue techniques and perform the majority of our searches within Polk County.  However, we have been called to every surrounding county to assist with their searches.  Some of our personnel have been trained in medium-incline rescue and retrieval.  This operation requires rappelling down an incline to a fallen victim, evaluating the situation, providing first aid per our training, and assisting paramedics or fire rescue personnel in a retrieval situation.</div> <div> In addition to our regular members, we also use certified K9 SAR teams that are a highly effective resource in locating missing persons.  The K9's and their handlers live, train, and work together. It is imperative that a strong and trusting relationship exists between a handler and their K9 partner in order for this SAR team to work most effectively.  Special training works to specifically focus a K9's extraordinary sense of smell to detect human scent. The K9's endurance, heightened night vision, ranging ability, and acute sense of hearing, in combination with trailing, tracking, or air scent training enables this team to search large areas in any type of terrain.   The K9 teams work with and in support of the other county SAR resources.</div> <div> Our three-month SAR Academy trains new members in the following:</div> <div> Incident Command System</div> <div> Sheriff's Office Policies and Procedures</div> <div> Critical Incident Stress</div> <div> Radio Techniques </div> <div> First Aid and CPR</div> <div> Environmental Injuries</div> <div>             Hyper and Hypothermia</div> <div>             Blood Borne Pathogens</div> <div> Map and Compass</div> <div> Aircraft Retrieval</div> <div> Emergency Locater Transmitter (ELT) </div> <div> Search Techniques</div> <div>             Ground Search </div> <div>             Search Dogs (K9)</div> <div> Death Scene Investigation</div> <div> Crime Scene Search</div> <div> Outdoor Survival</div> <div> Man Tracking</div> <div> Mock Search.  </div> <bR> <div> Additional training is provided throughout the year.</div> <div>      Rescue Knots</div> <div>      Medium Incline Rescue and Retrieval</div> <div>      Orienteering</div> <div>      GPS</div> <div>      Search Tactics</div> <div>      Pack and Vehicle Supplies </div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> Some Pictures of our Training</div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="a532ce10.jpg" border=0 width="300" height="225" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <B>Building a Shelter</B></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="a552ce10.jpg" border=0 width="300" height="225" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <B>Learning To Track</B></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="a572cd80.jpg" border=0 width="300" height="216" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <B>Wilderness Survival</B></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>