Search-and-rescue teams, which rely mainly on rural volunteers, are being stretched thin by the pandemic

The Rocky Mountain Rescue Group in Colorado on a mission earlier this year. (RMRG photo via Stateline)

Search-and-rescue teams, lifelines that are mainly by volunteers in rural areas, are being stretched thin by the coronavirus pandemic, Alex Brown reports for Stateline.

"The pandemic has led some older and higher-risk members to stay home, while others who have lost work or changed jobs no longer have the money or flexibility to deploy. And the need to postpone or cancel in-person training means fewer new volunteers, accelerating a long-term problem," Brown writes. "The pandemic also has forced teams to adjust rescue practices for social distancing and buy protective equipment such as masks."

In some areas, such as southwestern Utah, the need for searches and rescues have increased. “We've been very taxed,” said Sgt. Darrell Cashin, a sheriff-department liaison for the teams. “When covid came out, I really thought our rescues were going to drop through the floor. But we're actually having a record year at this point, with a diminished capacity to respond. It was like the floodgates opened. It's been rescue after rescue after rescue, and it's not stopped.”

Brown reports, "In response, lawmakers in several states are considering proposals ranging from providing state funding for programs and workers’ compensation insurance for volunteers to charging people for their rescues." That would be a case of first impression for most states. "Nearly all search and rescue missions in the United States are handled by volunteer teams, who mostly pay for their own equipment and work under a patchwork of guidelines and government oversight that can vary widely by state," Brown reports.

SAR teams in many areas were already busier than before because outdoor recreation has been increasing lately, Brown notes: "Many of the newcomers to public lands are inexperienced and lack the appropriate gear, skills or fitness for major excursions. SAR leaders say they often have to rescue hikers who become lost when their phone loses its signal or dies, or who try to summit a mountain they saw on Instagram without researching the terrain or weather."