Bush Search and Rescue Victoria will only respond to an official Victoria Police call. We will normally only be called for searches in bush and mountain areas, perhaps snow covered, where our members’ skills are most appropriate, rather than in urban or farming areas.

Members should make every effort to respond to a call-out. Your commitment as a searcher is valuable irrespective of who is missing. The detail you first hear is normally very brief and may not communicate the seriousness of the situation. BSAR are called out by the Police because we provide a source of personnel with expertise not readily available from other emergency services organisations.

A call-out means you are needed.

Police and Bush Search and Rescue members at the Mt Stirling practice 2001 

Sometimes news reports may indicate that someone is lost in the bush or snow and this may give some advance warning, but call-outs can occur at any time, usually in advance of news reports. Weekends are probably the most likely time for trouble. It is also far more likely that calls will be at night rather than during the day. This is because people are seldom reported missing before nightfall and by the time Police investigate and a decision is made to call BSAR for a dawn start next day, it is usually late at night. When these two factors are combined, the period around weekends is probably the most likely time for a call-out with Monday nights being the most common. Searches are never called off due to bad weather or rough conditions.

A search call-out is not the time to recruit new members and non-members will not be permitted to attend a search.

Call-outs can take a long time. Also, at this early stage of a search, the Club Contact or the PLO will have very little information, some of which may be inaccurate. For both these reasons you should not waste time requesting details, but concentrate on times, transport arrangements and special equipment requirements. These are best written down immediately.

As a volunteer you are not compelled to make yourself available and you should only do so if no serious inconvenience would result and you and your equipment are up to standard.

Call-outs are for up to two full days of searching. Travelling to and from the search area is typically done at night. If you cannot commit yourself for two days, it is best to make yourself unavailable. If you are unavailable initially, please inform your Club Contact whether you may be able to attend later call-outs should they arise during the search.

If you are available, you will be told briefly of the area, the person or persons lost, the maps required, if known, any special equipment that may be required, and the place and time of departure. Ensure you have the correct place and time. Note pm or am if the time is not given in the 24 hour system. If you cannot give an immediate reply you must promptly advise the Club Contact whether or not you can attend. Do not report to the departure point without having advised the Club Contact first. If and when you are called, you are asked not to recruit other volunteers, no matter how willing or capable. Extra people may upset transport arrangements and they may not be covered by the Emergency Management Act.

Often as little as two or three hours notice is given and if delays or difficulties have occurred you may not have sufficient time to reach the departure point. Search groups must leave at the designated time, so if you are unable to make the departure point, let your Club Contact know and wait for the next call-out.

How Call-outs Work

• Police Search and Rescue (SAR) contact Police Liaison Officer (PLO) or Field Organiser (FO), by working down the call-out list. 
• Police SAR initiate a call-out ideally by 6pm.  BSAR Members are then contacted after 7pm, usually for a transport rendezvous the same night or very early the next morning. The best time for BSAR to arrive at the search location in most circumstances is first light.
• PLOs may then initiate a call-out if required. Alternatively, a Standby may be issued. 
• If a party is missing overnight in snow and/or inclement weather conditions, Police SAR would consider calling out BSAR immediately.

 Call-out system

Message Types

There are three types of message content:

• Standby:  Just a heads-up with basic information and no reply option (SMS and/or email)
• Call-out:  May contain more information, indicates that responses are being sought (automated telephony, SMS and/or email)
• Call-off (or "Cancellation"):  All efforts are made to communicate by the same media and to the same recipients as the preceding Standby or Call-out messages.

Call-out Media

There are several media available for PLOs to send Standby, Call-out or Call-off messages:

• SMS - Sometimes requesting a response, sometimes not.
• Email - Usually as a backup to SMS
• Telephone Tree - The PLO manually phones Club Contacts, who in turn call their club members.  Club Contacts inform PLO of who will attend.
• Automated Telephony - A recorded message sent to the member's home phone or, where the member does not have a landline, the member's mobile.

Typical Call-out Scenarios

While, detailed procedures exist for PLOs and FOs for each of these scenarios, search PLOs will use the contact media available to them in the combination that is most suitable to the circumstance.  These are the most likely combinations.

General Call-out

before ~9pm

• Typically, PLO uses SMS, email and telephone tree via Club Contacts who then call their club members on their club call-out list.
• Club Contacts pass on departure information to BSAR Searchers who confirm they can attend
• Club Contacts advise PLO of searchers from their club who will attend

after ~9pm

• Typically, PLO uses SMS, email and automated telephony.
• Searchers respond to PLO via SMS (preferably) or email
• PLO confirms directly with Searchers

Rapid Response Call-out

• PLO sends out SMS and email (optional) direct to BSAR Searchers advising of search
• PLO may also initiate Automated Telephony (optional) that calls home numbers and plays a recorded message advising that the call-out is in progress and mobile phones should be checked for SMS messages.
• BSAR Searchers reply to SMS to advise availability
• PLO sends confirmation SMS to searchers with departure date, time and location

Limited Numbers Call-out

• As per Rapid Response Call-out (above).
• PLO will accept members for the search as they respond, until the required number is achieved
• PLO may perform the call-out by SMS alone, following with other media if the required number does not immediately respond

Cold Case Call-outs

• SAR initiates by contacting a PLO in the usual fashion in advance of the search.
• PLO will use SMS and email for the call-out.
• After consultation with Police, the FO will brief searchers in advance by email.

Local Call-outs

• Local Police Operations Commander initiates by contacting local BSAR club contact directly.
• Local Police Operations Commander notifies Police Search and Rescue of local call-out in progress.
• Local BSAR club notifies BSAR PLO of local call-out in progress
• Escalation to general BSAR call-out is at the discretion of local Police Operations Command, in consultation with Police Search and Rescue.
• Transport for BSAR searchers on local call-outs is preferably by local Police 4WD vehicles. However, members can travel by private car if authorised by local police.
• Note: Use of private cars for BSAR transport on searches is strongly discouraged.

Call-offs

A call-off, sometimes called a "cancellation", in the event of a person being found, can occur at any time up to the arrival at the search area. This may cause considerable inconvenience (less inconvenience than a search), but they cannot be helped and must be accepted.

Updated 16 Mar 2011