SBO-OVSAR operates in the Western Quebec and Eastern Ontario regions of Canada.

There is a clear divide in SBO-OVSAR between “operations” and “administration”. An elected Board of Directors and President handle policy, fundraising, membership recruitment and services, finances, communications and public relations. A specialized group is also trained to deliver public education and prevention programs.

The Operations function handles searches and operational readiness. SBO-OVSAR, its holdings and its responsibilities have grown over the years. Today, operations are handled by two Board appointed positions:

The Director of Operations – is responsible for all searches, the Incident Management Team (which manages any searches where SBO-OVSAR is asked to do so), the Dispatch Team and relations with tasking agencies (i.e. police forces, emergency management organisations).

The General Manager – is responsible for operations readiness, all the equipment and all the specialty teams. These include the following: Logistics, First Aid, Canine, Tracking, Mountain Bike and Training.

Operations and Incident Commander

The incident management team is very busy in the incident command post during a search exercise.

This team is comprised of trained search managers. At all times, 5 members of this team carry pagers to receive calls from tasking agencies. All members of the team are capable of activating the whole team for dispatch and providing either full search management services to the tasking agency or coordination of responding members to a search or incident. This team is also capable of sustaining itself through multiple operational periods.

This team is on standby 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, 365 days per year and is responsible for contacting operational members of SBO-OVSAR for response to a tasking agency’s call for assistance. Using an automated robocall system, computer messages, SMS text messages, phones and amateur radio, this team provides a vital link between responding members and the overhead team at an incident.

This team is responsible for ensuring SBO-OVSAR’s equipment and vehicles are ready for deployment to an incident. From preventative maintenance to repair and replacement, this team is a critical part of SBO-OVSAR’s capability for an effective response that is “bomb-proof” through its efforts.

All operational members of SBO-OVSAR are required to maintain a standard first aid certification to remain deployable. Many team members also obtain further training in wilderness first aid. The First Aid Team supports the team’s first aid capabilities by conducting training, developing and implementing new policies and procedures or updating existing ones, and procuring, organizing, and maintaining equipment and supplies.

This team is in development. Tracking is the skill of being able to follow a person simply by seeing the different types of signs that they leave as they pass through an area. It requires considerable practice to get proficient. Following an initial tacking course delivered by the the B.C. Tracking Association, this team has maintained a steady training program and is passing on these skills to other members to increase our capacity.

This is another team in development. Mountain bikes can be an effective resource on a search for such assignments as hasty searches on trails and roads, or confinement through trail or road patrols. They can also assist by bringing additional equipment or supplies to teams in the field.

A search and rescue team is nothing without training. This team organizes and delivers an extensive array of training for the group, from the Basic Search and Rescue Course for new recruits to all manners of skill training, practices and re-certification exercises for searchers and team leaders. SBO-OVSAR members meet and maintain standards set by the Ontario Provincial Police, the Ministry of Public Safety in Quebec and the our selected training program from the Emergency Response Institute. The training is also aligned with the CSA Core competency standards for ground search and rescue operations: Searchers, team leader, and SAR manager (Z1620-15). The training team also ensures an ongoing regime of advanced skill development (seeking external trainers as needed) and field exercises including 2 annual full-scale search and rescue exercises that tests the teams deployment, incident management and ground SAR capabilities.